Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Italy instead of Syria, you would:

Health

live 8.3 years longer

In Syria, the average life expectancy is 74 years (73 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 28.4% less likely to be obese

In Syria, 27.8% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Italy, that number is 19.9% of people as of 2016.

Economy

make 18.2 times more money

Syria has a GDP per capita of $2,900 as of 2021, while in Italy, the GDP per capita is $52,700 as of 2023.

be 43.7% less likely to be unemployed

In Syria, 13.5% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Italy, that number is 7.6% as of 2023.

be 75.6% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Syria, 82.5% live below the poverty line as of 2014. In Italy, however, that number is 20.1% as of 2021.

pay a 2.2 times higher top tax rate

Syria has a top tax rate of 22.0% as of 2016. In Italy, the top tax rate is 48.8% as of 2016.

Life

be 83.3% less likely to die during childbirth

In Syria, approximately 30.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Italy, 5.0 women do as of 2020.

be 14.8% more likely to be literate

In Syria, the literacy rate is 86.4% as of 2015. In Italy, it is 99.2% as of 2018.

be 80.1% 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 Italy, on the other hand, 3.2 children do as of 2022.

have 67.3% fewer children

In Syria, there are approximately 21.7 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 12.4% more likely to have access to electricity

In Syria, approximately 89% of the population has electricity access as of 2022. In Italy, 100% of the population do as of 2022.

be 60.9% more likely to have internet access

In Syria, approximately 46.6% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Italy, about 75.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 15.7% less on education

Syria spends 5.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2009. Italy spends 4.3% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

Geography

see 39.4 times more coastline

Syria has a total of 193 km of coastline. In Italy, that number is 7,600 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Ministry of Finance, Syria, Italian Revenue Agency.

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 Syria? See an in-depth size comparison.

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