Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Iceland instead of United Arab Emirates, you would:

Health

live 4.1 years longer

In United Arab Emirates, the average life expectancy is 80 years (78 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2022. In Iceland, that number is 84 years (81 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2022.

be 30.9% less likely to be obese

In United Arab Emirates, 31.7% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Iceland, that number is 21.9% of people as of 2016.

Economy

be 54.9% less likely to live below the poverty line

In United Arab Emirates, 19.5% live below the poverty line as of 2003. In Iceland, however, that number is 8.8% as of 2017.

make 12.0% less money

United Arab Emirates has a GDP per capita of $75,600 as of 2023, while in Iceland, the GDP per capita is $66,500 as of 2023.

be 31.4% more likely to be unemployed

In United Arab Emirates, 2.7% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Iceland, that number is 3.6% as of 2023.

Life

be 66.7% less likely to die during childbirth

In United Arab Emirates, approximately 9.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Iceland, 3.0 women do as of 2020.

be 67.9% less likely to die during infancy

In United Arab Emirates, approximately 5.1 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Iceland, on the other hand, 1.6 children do as of 2022.

have 17.8% more children

In United Arab Emirates, there are approximately 10.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Iceland, there are 12.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Expenditures

spend 97.4% more on education

United Arab Emirates spends 3.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Iceland spends 7.7% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 74.5% more on healthcare

United Arab Emirates spends 5.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Iceland, that number is 9.6% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 3.8 times more coastline

United Arab Emirates has a total of 1,318 km of coastline. In Iceland, that number is 4,970 km.

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

Iceland: At a glance

Iceland is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 100,250 sq km. Settled by Norwegian and Celtic (Scottish and Irish) immigrants during the late 9th and 10th centuries A.D., Iceland boasts the world's oldest functioning legislative assembly, the Althing, established in 930. Independent for over 300 years, Iceland was subsequently ruled by Norway and Denmark. Fallout from the Askja volcano of 1875 devastated the Icelandic economy and caused widespread famine. Over the next quarter century, 20% of the island's population emigrated, mostly to Canada and the US. Denmark granted limited home rule in 1874 and complete independence in 1944. The second half of the 20th century saw substantial economic growth driven primarily by the fishing industry. The economy diversified greatly after the country joined the European Economic Area in 1994, but Iceland was especially hard hit by the global financial crisis in the years following 2008. Literacy, longevity, and social cohesion are first rate by world standards.
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How big is Iceland compared to United Arab Emirates? See an in-depth size comparison.

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