Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Hong Kong instead of Syria, you would:

Health

live 9.3 years longer

In Syria, the average life expectancy is 74 years (73 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2022. In Hong Kong, that number is 84 years (81 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

make 20.2 times more money

Syria has a GDP per capita of $2,900 as of 2015, while in Hong Kong, the GDP per capita is $58,500 as of 2022.

be 68.7% less likely to be unemployed

In Syria, 13.8% of adults are unemployed as of 2022. In Hong Kong, that number is 4.3% as of 2022.

be 75.9% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Syria, 82.5% live below the poverty line as of 2014. In Hong Kong, however, that number is 19.9% as of 2016.

pay a 31.8% lower top tax rate

Syria has a top tax rate of 22.0% as of 2016. In Hong Kong, the top tax rate is 15.0% as of 2016.

Life

be 83.9% less likely to die during infancy

In Syria, approximately 15.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Hong Kong, on the other hand, 2.5 children do as of 2022.

have 65.0% fewer children

In Syria, there are approximately 21.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Hong Kong, there are 7.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Basic Needs

be 12.6% more likely to have access to electricity

In Syria, approximately 89% of the population has electricity access as of 2021. In Hong Kong, 100% of the population do as of 2021.

be 99.6% more likely to have internet access

In Syria, approximately 46.6% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Hong Kong, about 93.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 21.6% less on education

Syria spends 5.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2009. Hong Kong spends 4.0% of total GDP on education as of 2021.

Geography

see 3.8 times more coastline

Syria has a total of 193 km of coastline. In Hong Kong, that number is 733 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Ministry of Finance, Syria, Inland Revenue Department, Hong Kong.

Hong Kong: At a glance

Hong Kong (sometimes abbreviated HK) is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 1,073 sq km. Occupied by the UK in 1841, Hong Kong was formally ceded by China the following year; various adjacent lands were added later in the 19th century. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and the UK on 19 December 1984, Hong Kong became the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the People's Republic of China on 1 July 1997. In this agreement, China promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's socialist economic system would not be imposed on Hong Kong and that Hong Kong would enjoy a "high degree of autonomy" in all matters except foreign and defense affairs for the subsequent 50 years.
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How big is Hong Kong compared to Syria? See an in-depth size comparison.

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