Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Bulgaria instead of Serbia, you would:

Health

live 1.4 years longer

In Serbia, the average life expectancy is 74 years (72 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2022. In Bulgaria, that number is 76 years (72 years for men, 79 years for women) as of 2022.

be 16.3% more likely to be obese

In Serbia, 21.5% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Bulgaria, that number is 25.0% of people as of 2016.

Economy

make 35.9% more money

Serbia has a GDP per capita of $24,500 as of 2023, while in Bulgaria, the GDP per capita is $33,300 as of 2023.

be 50.5% less likely to be unemployed

In Serbia, 8.7% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Bulgaria, that number is 4.3% as of 2023.

pay a 33.3% lower top tax rate

Serbia has a top tax rate of 15.0% as of 2017. In Bulgaria, the top tax rate is 10.0% as of 2016.

Life

be 30.0% less likely to die during childbirth

In Serbia, approximately 10.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Bulgaria, 7.0 women do as of 2020.

be 65.9% more likely to die during infancy

In Serbia, approximately 4.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Bulgaria, on the other hand, 8.0 children do as of 2022.

have 10.2% fewer children

In Serbia, there are approximately 8.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Bulgaria, there are 7.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Expenditures

spend 11.1% more on education

Serbia spends 3.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2019. Bulgaria spends 4.0% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, National Revenue Agency, Bulgaria, Ministry of Finance, Republic of Serbia.

Bulgaria: At a glance

Bulgaria is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 108,489 sq km. The Bulgars, a Central Asian Turkic tribe, merged with the local Slavic inhabitants in the late 7th century to form the first Bulgarian state. In succeeding centuries, Bulgaria struggled with the Byzantine Empire to assert its place in the Balkans, but by the end of the 14th century the country was overrun by the Ottoman Turks. Northern Bulgaria attained autonomy in 1878 and all of Bulgaria became independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1908. Having fought on the losing side in both World Wars, Bulgaria fell within the Soviet sphere of influence and became a People's Republic in 1946. Communist domination ended in 1990, when Bulgaria held its first multiparty election since World War II and began the contentious process of moving toward political democracy and a market economy while combating inflation, unemployment, corruption, and crime. The country joined NATO in 2004 and the EU in 2007.
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How big is Bulgaria compared to Serbia? See an in-depth size comparison.

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