Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Greenland instead of Papua New Guinea, you would:

Health

live 4.5 years longer

In Papua New Guinea, the average life expectancy is 69 years (68 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2022. In Greenland, that number is 74 years (71 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

make 16.2 times more money

Papua New Guinea has a GDP per capita of $4,200 as of 2023, while in Greenland, the GDP per capita is $68,100 as of 2021.

be 56.2% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Papua New Guinea, 37.0% live below the poverty line as of 2002. In Greenland, however, that number is 16.2% as of 2015.

be 3.4 times more likely to be unemployed

In Papua New Guinea, 2.6% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Greenland, that number is 9.1% as of 2015.

Life

be 55.8% more likely to be literate

In Papua New Guinea, the literacy rate is 64.2% as of 2015. In Greenland, it is 100.0% as of 2015.

be 74.0% less likely to die during infancy

In Papua New Guinea, approximately 33.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Greenland, on the other hand, 8.8 children do as of 2022.

have 52.0% fewer children

In Papua New Guinea, there are approximately 28.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Greenland, there are 13.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Basic Needs

be 5.3 times more likely to have access to electricity

In Papua New Guinea, approximately 19% of the population has electricity access as of 2022. In Greenland, 100% of the population do as of 2022.

be 2.2 times more likely to have internet access

In Papua New Guinea, approximately 32.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Greenland, about 69.5% do as of 2021.

be 2.1 times more likely to have access to improved drinking water

In Papua New Guinea, approximately 48% of people have improved drinking water access (86% in urban areas, and 42% in rural areas) as of 2020. In Greenland, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2020.

Expenditures

spend 7.3 times more on education

Papua New Guinea spends 1.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Greenland spends 10.2% of total GDP on education as of 2019.

Geography

see 8.6 times more coastline

Papua New Guinea has a total of 5,152 km of coastline. In Greenland, that number is 44,087 km.

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

Greenland: At a glance

Greenland is a sovereign country in North America, with a total land area of approximately 2,166,086 sq km. Greenland, the world's largest island, is about 81% ice-capped. Vikings reached the island in the 10th century from Iceland; Danish colonization began in the 18th century, and Greenland was made an integral part of Denmark in 1953. It joined the European Community (now the EU) with Denmark in 1973 but withdrew in 1985 over a dispute centered on stringent fishing quotas. Greenland was granted self-government in 1979 by the Danish parliament; the law went into effect the following year. Greenland voted in favor of increased self-rule in November 2008 and acquired greater responsibility for internal affairs when the Act on Greenland Self-Government was signed into law in June 2009. Denmark, however, continues to exercise control over several policy areas on behalf of Greenland including foreign affairs, security, and financial policy in consultation with Greenland's Self-Rule Government.
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How big is Greenland compared to Papua New Guinea? See an in-depth size comparison.

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