Born in China or in United States?
Two babies are born the same second, one in China and one in United States. This is what the numbers say about the two lives ahead of them.
- A baby born in China can expect to live 78.1 years; in United States, 79 years.
- The chance of dying before the age of five is about the same in both.
- Income per person in United States buys 3.1 times as much as in China.
- Each year about 9,522,580 babies are born in China and 3,622,919 in United States.
Side by side
| Indicator | China | United States | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Health and survival | |||
| Life expectancy, women (years) | 81 | 81.4 | 75.9 |
| Life expectancy, men (years) | 75.3 | 76.5 | 71 |
| Babies who die before 1 (per 1,000) | 4.1 | 5.5 | 27.8 |
| Children who die before 5 (per 1,000) | 5.7 | 6.5 | 37.6 |
| Mothers who die in childbirth (per 100,000 births) | 16 | 17 | 189 |
| Adults living with HIV (%) | โ 0.3 | โ 0.1 | 0.7 |
| Adults who smoke (%) | 23 | 16 | 20 |
| Alcohol per adult (litres a year) | 4.6 | 9.9 | 4.6 |
| Road deaths (per 100,000) | 17.4 | 12.7 | 17 |
| Homicides (per 100,000) | 0.5 | 5.8 | 4.7 |
| Family and school | |||
| Children per woman | 1.01 | 1.63 | 2.85 |
| Women married before 18 (%) | 3 | โ 17 | 18 |
| Children in primary school (%) | 89 | 95 | 89 |
| Secondary school enrolment (%) | 92 | 97 | 81 |
| Higher education enrolment (%) | 77 | 79 | 48 |
| Children aged 7โ14 who work (%) | โ 11.5 | โ 14.3 | 11.9 |
| Money and work | |||
| Income per person (PPP) | $25,067 | $76,931 | $21,797 |
| Income inequality (Gini, 0โ100) | 36 | 42 | 34 |
| Living on under $3 a day (%) | 0 | 1.1 | 9.9 |
| Unemployment (%) | 4.6 | 4.2 | 5.1 |
| Jobs in farming (%) | 22 | 2 | 27 |
| Women in the workforce (%) | 59 | 56 | 48 |
| Health costs paid out of pocket (%) | 32 | 11 | 37 |
| Home and connection | |||
| Living in cities (%) | 66 | 80 | 58 |
| Access to electricity (%) | 100 | 100 | 92 |
| Safe drinking water (%) | 96 | 100 | 91 |
| Internet users (%) | 92 | 95 | 72 |
| Peace and wellbeing | |||
| Life satisfaction (0โ10) | 6.07 | 6.82 | 5.4 |
| Deaths in armed conflict (per 100,000 a year) | 0 | 0 | 2.43 |
| Refugees abroad (% of population) | 0.01 | 0 | 0.34 |
โ Estimated from the region
From 1960 to 2050
How life here has changed, and where UN projections expect it to go. The dashed part is a projection.
China: 1960: 33.5 โ 2026: 79.2 โ 2050: 83.4United States: 1960: 69.9 โ 2026: 79.1 โ 2050: 83.3
ChinaUnited StatesWorld
China: 1960: 199 โ 2026: 5 โ 2050: 2United States: 1960: 30 โ 2026: 6 โ 2050: 5
ChinaUnited StatesWorld
China: 1960: 4.5 โ 2026: 1.1 โ 2050: 1.2United States: 1960: 3.7 โ 2026: 1.6 โ 2050: 1.6
ChinaUnited StatesWorld
China: 1960: 20 โ 2026: 67 โ 2050: 90United States: 1960: 70 โ 2026: 80 โ 2050: 86
ChinaUnited StatesWorld
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Sources: World Bank (WDI), UN World Population Prospects, Our World in Data, World Happiness Report, UCDP and PRIO. Updated 2026-10-18.