Compare
France vs Netherlands
How France and Netherlands compare on 38 measures, from 1789 to 2025. The main differences:
- Life expectancy · In 2023, France was higher: 83.3 years against 82.2 years
- GDP per person · In 2025, Netherlands was higher: $51,820 against $39,920
- Population · In 2023, France was higher: 66.4 million people against 18.1 million people
- Military spending · In 2025, Netherlands was higher: 2.2% of GDP against 2.03% of GDP
- CO₂ per person · In 2024, Netherlands was higher: 6.6 tonnes against 4 tonnes
Every measure
Health
- Life expectancyFrance: 83.3 years in 2023Netherlands: 82.2 years in 2023
- Child mortalityFrance: 0.4 per 100 live births in 2024Netherlands: 0.4 per 100 live births in 2024
- Infant mortalityFrance: 3.5 per 1,000 live births in 2023Netherlands: 3.4 per 1,000 live births in 2023
- Safe drinking waterFrance: 99.7% in 2022Netherlands: 100% in 2022
- DepressionFrance: 4.25% in 2017Netherlands: 4.03% in 2017
- Suicide rateFrance: 12.4 per 100,000 people in 2017Netherlands: 9.2 per 100,000 people in 2017
People
- PopulationFrance: 66.4 million people in 2023Netherlands: 18.1 million people in 2023
- Population growthFrance: 0.17% a year in 2023Netherlands: 0.81% a year in 2023
- Fertility rateFrance: 1.64 births per woman in 2023Netherlands: 1.43 births per woman in 2023
- Urban populationFrance: 78.8% in 2025Netherlands: 95.9% in 2025
- Median ageFrance: 41.8 years in 2023Netherlands: 41.4 years in 2023
- People aged 65 and overFrance: 21.8% in 2023Netherlands: 20.2% in 2023
- Net migration rateFrance: 1.4 per 1,000 people in 2023Netherlands: 8 per 1,000 people in 2023
Economy
Education
Politics
Conflict
Military
- Military spendingFrance: 2.03% of GDP in 2025Netherlands: 2.2% of GDP in 2025
- Military spending in US dollarsFrance: $64.5B in 2025Netherlands: $27B in 2025
- Military spending per personFrance: $1,021 in 2025Netherlands: $1,582 in 2025
- Military share of state spendingFrance: 3.5% of government spending in 2025Netherlands: 4.8% of government spending in 2025
- Armed forces personnelFrance: 304,000 people in 2020Netherlands: 41,000 people in 2020
- National powerFrance: 1.09% of world capability in 2022Netherlands: 0.38% of world capability in 2022
- Armed forces, share of workersFrance: 1% of the labour force in 2020Netherlands: 0.42% of the labour force in 2020
- Arms importsFrance: 236 million TIV in 2025Netherlands: 824 million TIV in 2025
- Arms exportsFrance: 3.37 billion TIV in 2025Netherlands: 601 million TIV in 2025
Climate
Technology and environment
Each country on its own
Good to know
- Sources: UN, Gapminder and UN IGME, WHO/UNICEF, IHME, World Bank, IMF, Our World in Data, V-Dem, UCDP, SIPRI, IISS, Correlates of War, ERA5, CMIP6, EDGAR, ITU and FAO. Each measure’s page names its own and what it counts.
- Values are drawn on today’s borders. Years without a published value are left empty, never filled in.
How the layers work, where their data comes from and what they can’t tell you: Countries through time