Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in China instead of Thailand, you would:

Health

be 38.0% less likely to be obese

In Thailand, 10.0% of adults are obese as of 2016. In China, that number is 6.2% of people as of 2016.

live 1.6 years less

In Thailand, the average life expectancy is 78 years (75 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2022. In China, that number is 76 years (74 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2020.

Economy

be 5.1 times more likely to be unemployed

In Thailand, 0.9% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In China, that number is 4.7% as of 2023.

pay a 28.6% higher top tax rate

Thailand has a top tax rate of 35.0% as of 2016. In China, the top tax rate is 45.0% as of 2016.

Life

be 20.7% less likely to die during childbirth

In Thailand, approximately 29.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In China, 23.0 women do as of 2020.

Basic Needs

be 14.1% less likely to have internet access

In Thailand, approximately 85.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In China, about 73.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 12.5% more on education

Thailand spends 3.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. China spends 3.6% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 27.3% more on healthcare

Thailand spends 4.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In China, that number is 5.6% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 4.5 times more coastline

Thailand has a total of 3,219 km of coastline. In China, that number is 14,500 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, The Revenue Department, Government of Thailand, State Administration of Taxation.

China: At a glance

China (sometimes abbreviated PRC) is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 9,326,410 sq km. For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. After World War II, the communists under MAO Zedong established an autocratic socialist system that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of people. After 1978, MAO's successor DENG Xiaoping and other leaders focused on market-oriented economic development and by 2000 output had quadrupled. For much of the population, living standards have improved dramatically and the room for personal choice has expanded, yet political controls remain tight. Since the early 1990s, China has increased its global outreach and participation in international organizations.
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How big is China compared to Thailand? See an in-depth size comparison.

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