Quality of life comparison

compared to

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

Health

live 10.8 years longer

In North Korea, the average life expectancy is 72 years (68 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2022. In Italy, that number is 83 years (80 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2022.

be 2.9 times more likely to be obese

In North Korea, 6.8% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Italy, that number is 19.9% of people as of 2016.

Economy

make 26.1 times more money

North Korea has a GDP per capita of $1,700 as of 2015, while in Italy, the GDP per capita is $44,300 as of 2022.

be 2.6 times more likely to be unemployed

In North Korea, 3.1% of adults are unemployed as of 2022. In Italy, that number is 8.1% as of 2022.

Life

be 95.3% less likely to die during childbirth

In North Korea, approximately 107.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Italy, 5.0 women do as of 2020.

be 85.8% less 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 Italy, on the other hand, 3.2 children do as of 2022.

have 46.2% fewer children

In North Korea, there are approximately 13.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Italy, there are 7.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Basic Needs

be 90.1% more likely to have access to electricity

In North Korea, approximately 53% of the population has electricity access as of 2021. In Italy, 100% of the population do as of 2021.

Geography

see 3.0 times more coastline

North Korea has a total of 2,495 km of coastline. In Italy, that number is 7,600 km.

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

Italy: At a glance

Italy is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 294,140 sq km. Italy became a nation-state in 1861 when the regional states of the peninsula, along with Sardinia and Sicily, were united under King Victor EMMANUEL II. An era of parliamentary government came to a close in the early 1920s when Benito MUSSOLINI established a Fascist dictatorship. His alliance with Nazi Germany led to Italy's defeat in World War II. A democratic republic replaced the monarchy in 1946 and economic revival followed. Italy is a charter member of NATO and the European Economic Community (EEC). It has been at the forefront of European economic and political unification, joining the Economic and Monetary Union in 1999. Persistent problems include sluggish economic growth, high youth and female unemployment, organized crime, corruption, and economic disparities between southern Italy and the more prosperous north.
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How big is Italy compared to North Korea? See an in-depth size comparison.

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