Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in India instead of North Korea, you would:

Health

be 42.6% less likely to be obese

In North Korea, 6.8% of adults are obese as of 2016. In India, that number is 3.9% of people as of 2016.

live 4.5 years less

In North Korea, the average life expectancy is 72 years (68 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2022. In India, that number is 67 years (65 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

make 4.2 times more money

North Korea has a GDP per capita of $1,700 as of 2015, while in India, the GDP per capita is $7,100 as of 2022.

be 57.0% more likely to be unemployed

In North Korea, 3.1% of adults are unemployed as of 2022. In India, that number is 4.8% as of 2022.

Life

have 22.7% more children

In North Korea, there are approximately 13.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In India, there are 16.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 25.6% less likely to be literate

In North Korea, the literacy rate is 100.0% as of 2015. In India, it is 74.4% as of 2018.

be 36.5% more likely to die during infancy

In North Korea, approximately 22.2 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In India, on the other hand, 30.3 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 89.2% more likely to have access to electricity

In North Korea, approximately 53% of people have electricity access (36% in urban areas, and 11% in rural areas) as of 2021. In India, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 99% in rural areas) as of 2021.

Geography

see 2.8 times more coastline

North Korea has a total of 2,495 km of coastline. In India, that number is 7,000 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.

India: At a glance

India is a sovereign country in South Asia, with a total land area of approximately 2,973,193 sq km. The Indus Valley civilization, one of the world's oldest, flourished during the 3rd and 2nd millennia B.C. and extended into northwestern India. Aryan tribes from the northwest infiltrated the Indian subcontinent about 1500 B.C.; their merger with the earlier Dravidian inhabitants created the classical Indian culture. The Maurya Empire of the 4th and 3rd centuries B.C. - which reached its zenith under ASHOKA - united much of South Asia. The Golden Age ushered in by the Gupta dynasty (4th to 6th centuries A.D.) saw a flowering of Indian science, art, and culture. Islam spread across the subcontinent over a period of 700 years. In the 10th and 11th centuries, Turks and Afghans invaded India and established the Delhi Sultanate. In the early 16th century, the Emperor BABUR established the Mughal Dynasty which ruled India for more than three centuries. European explorers began establishing footholds in India during the 16th century. By the 19th century, Great Britain had become the dominant political power on the subcontinent. The British Indian Army played a vital role in both World Wars. Years of nonviolent resistance to British rule, led by Mohandas GANDHI and Jawaharlal NEHRU, eventually resulted in Indian independence, which was granted in 1947. Large-scale communal violence took place before and after the subcontinent partition into two separate states - India and Pakistan. The neighboring nations have fought three wars since independence, the last of which was in 1971 and resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh. India's nuclear weapons tests in 1998 emboldened Pakistan to conduct its own tests that same year. In November 2008, terrorists originating from Pakistan conducted a series of coordinated attacks in Mumbai, India's financial capital. Despite pressing problems such as significant overpopulation, environmental degradation, extensive poverty, and widespread corruption, economic growth following the launch of economic reforms in 1991 and a massive youthful population are driving India's emergence as a regional and global power.
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How big is India compared to North Korea? See an in-depth size comparison.

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