Quality of life comparison
If you lived in South Korea instead of Vietnam, you would:
Health
live 7.5 years longer
In Vietnam, the average life expectancy is 76 years (73 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2022. In South Korea, that number is 83 years (80 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2022.
be 2.2 times more likely to be obese
In Vietnam, 2.1% of adults are obese as of 2016. In South Korea, that number is 4.7% of people as of 2016.
Economy
make 3.7 times more money
Vietnam has a GDP per capita of $13,700 as of 2023, while in South Korea, the GDP per capita is $50,600 as of 2023.
be 65.0% more likely to be unemployed
In Vietnam, 1.6% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In South Korea, that number is 2.6% as of 2023.
be 3.0 times more likely to live below the poverty line
In Vietnam, 4.8% live below the poverty line as of 2020. In South Korea, however, that number is 14.4% as of 2016.
Life
be 93.5% less likely to die during childbirth
In Vietnam, approximately 124.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In South Korea, 8.0 women do as of 2020.
be 80.5% less likely to die during infancy
In Vietnam, approximately 14.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In South Korea, on the other hand, 2.9 children do as of 2022.
have 53.6% fewer children
In Vietnam, there are approximately 14.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In South Korea, there are 6.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022.
Basic Needs
be 32.4% more likely to have internet access
In Vietnam, approximately 74.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In South Korea, about 98.0% do as of 2021.
Expenditures
spend 14.6% more on education
Vietnam spends 4.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. South Korea spends 4.7% of total GDP on education as of 2019.
spend 78.7% more on healthcare
Vietnam spends 4.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In South Korea, that number is 8.4% of GDP as of 2020.
Geography
see 29.9% less coastline
Vietnam has a total of 3,444 km of coastline. In South Korea, that number is 2,413 km.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.
South Korea: At a glance
How big is South Korea compared to Vietnam? See an in-depth size comparison.