Finland
GermanyCompare countries · Finland vs Germany
Finland vs Germany
FinlandNorthern Europe
GermanyWestern Europe
Finland is more peaceful (Global Peace Index 1.478 vs 1.657) and has the higher median disposable income (€29,740 vs €28,891).About the same on living costs (Finland 69.0, Germany 68.7), human development (0.948, 0.959) and life expectancy (82.3, 80.8 years).
Safety
Finland is the more peaceful
- Global Peace Indexlower is more peaceful
- Finland1.478Very high safety#9 of 161IEP GPI · 2026
- Germany1.657Very high safety#28 of 161IEP GPI · 2026
- Homicidesper 100,000 people a year
- Finland1.0LowUNODC / World Bank · 2023
- Germany0.9LowUNODC / World Bank · 2023
- Safety indexNumbeo's safety index, higher is safer
- Finland73.5HighNumbeo · 2026
- Germany61.6HighNumbeo · 2026
- UK travel adviceFCDO, for British travellers
- FinlandNo advice against travelFCDO foreign travel advice, GOV.UK · read 2026-10-12
- GermanyNo advice against travelFCDO foreign travel advice, GOV.UK · read 2026-10-12
Money
Median disposable income is higher in Finland
Health
Life expectancy: Finland 82.3, Germany 80.8
- Life expectancyyears, at birth
- Finland82.3Very high#26 of 195World Bank · 2024
- Germany80.8Very high#39 of 195World Bank · 2024
Work and internet
Youth unemployment is lower in Germany
- Youth unemploymentshare of 15 to 24 year olds in the labour force
- Finland21.8%Very highEurostat · 2025
- Germany7.1%Very lowEurostat · 2025
- Fixed broadbandmedian download speed
- Finland178 MbpsVery fastOokla Speedtest · 2025
- Germany103 MbpsVery fastOokla Speedtest · 2025
How it changed
Human development: Germany 0.959, Finland 0.948
FinlandGermany
UNDP Human Development Report, 1990–2023.
Practical facts
- Capital
- Helsinki
- Berlin
- Population
- 5.6M (2025)
- 83.5M (2025)
- Languages
- Finnish, Swedish
- German
- Currency
- euro (EUR)
- euro (EUR)
- Area
- 303,960 km²
- 349,430 km²
- Plug type
- Type C/F
- Type C/F
- Drives on the
- right
- right
- Short visit
- Visa-free for UK, EU and US passports
- Visa-free for UK and US; visa needed for EU
Short visits: passport-index-dataset, 2024, for UK, EU (German) and US passports. Population and area: World Bank. Languages, currency and driving side: restcountries.com. Plug types: worldstandards.eu.
Every figure
Finland and Germany, side by side
Finland leads on 46 Germany on 1911 level116 figures. 1 is held for only one country; the other shows a dash. Rows such as population, religion and tax levels have no better or worse end, so they show both values and no verdict. Level means under 2% apart.
Money and cost27
- Median Income aheadEurostat · 2025
- €29,740High
- €28,891High
- PPP / Cap aheadWorld Bank · 2025
- $65,884High
- $75,407High
- GDP / Cap aheadWorld Bank · 2025
- $56,149Very high
- $60,496Very high
- GNI / Cap aheadWorld Bank · 2025
- $55,250Very high
- $60,200Very high
- Local purchasing power aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 129.4Very high
- 138.3Very high
- Cost of LivingLevelNumbeo · 2026
- 69.0Expensive
- 68.7Expensive
- Cost of living with rent aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 48Very high
- 49Very high
- Rent index aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 21.9Expensive
- 24.6Very expensive
- Groceries index aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 68.7Very high
- 64.9Very high
- Restaurant prices index aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 74.1Very high
- 66.9Very high
- Property Price-to-Income aheadNumbeo Property Investment · 2026
- 7.2Very affordable
- 7.9Very affordable
- Price level ratio aheadWorld Bank ICP
- 1.542Very high
- 1.382Very high
- Housing Overburden aheadEurostat · 2025
- 4.7%Very low
- 11.2%Very high
- Electricity Price aheadEurostat · 2025
- €0.225Moderate
- €0.387Very expensive
- Energy Poverty aheadEurostat · 2025
- 2.6%Very low
- 5.7%Moderate
- Inflation aheadWorld Bank · 2025
- 0.3%Very low
- 2.2%Low
- Pension Replacement aheadOECD Pensions at a Glance · 2024
- 57.8%Moderate
- 42.1%Low
- Bank AccountLevelWorld Bank Global Findex · 2024
- 99.8%Very high
- 98.3%Very high
- Send RemittanceWorld Bank Remittance Prices Worldwide · 2023
- —
- 3%Moderate
- Tax WedgeOECD Taxing Wages · 2025
- 42.5%
- 49.3%
- Top Income TaxWikipedia · 2024
- 53.6%
- 45%
- Corporate TaxWikipedia · 2024
- 20%
- 30%
- VAT / GSTWikipedia · 2024
- 25.5%
- 19%
- Tax RevenueWorld Bank · 2024
- 25.3%
- 10.9%
- GDP (total)World Bank · 2025
- $317 bn
- $5,051 bn
- FDI InflowsWorld Bank · 2025
- -0.1%
- 1.9%
- Innovation aheadWIPO Global Innovation Index · 2025
- 57.7Very high
- 55.5Very high
Work4
- UnemploymentWorld Bank · 2025
- 9.5%
- 3.7%
- Youth Unemployment aheadEurostat · 2025
- 21.8%Very high
- 7.1%Very low
- Long Work Hours aheadOECD Better Life Index · 2020
- 3.6%Low
- 3.9%Low
- Public Holidaysdate.nager.at · 2025
- 15
- 14
Equality7
- Income Inequality aheadWorld Bank · 2022–2023
- 27.4Very low
- 33.7Moderate
- Income Share Bot. 20% aheadWorld Bank · 2022–2023
- 9.2Very high
- 6.9Low
- Income Share Top 10% aheadWorld Bank · 2022–2023
- 22.5Very low
- 26.2Moderate
- Poverty Rate aheadWorld Bank · 2022–2023
- 0.4%Very low
- 1.6%Low
- Poverty Risk aheadEurostat · 2025
- 13.4%Low
- 16.1%Moderate
- Gender Inequality aheadUNDP Human Development Report · 2023
- 0.021Very low
- 0.057Very low
- Inequality-Adj. HDILevelUNDP HDR
- 0.891Very high
- 0.890Very high
Safety10
- Peace Index aheadIEP Global Peace Index · 2026
- 1.478Very high safety
- 1.657Very high safety
- Safety aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 73.5High
- 61.6High
- Homicides / 100k aheadUNODC / World Bank · 2023
- 1.0Low
- 0.9Low
- Crime Perception aheadEurostat · 2023
- 11.5%Very high
- 10.7%High
- Assault Rate aheadUNODC CTS · 2023
- 32.1Moderate
- 182.8High
- Robbery Rate aheadUNODC CTS · 2023–2024
- 46.1High
- 53.1High
- Sexual Violence Rate aheadUNODC CTS · 2023
- 109Very high
- 62.3High
- Kidnapping Rate aheadUNODC CTS · 2023
- 0.07Very low
- 6Very high
- Road Deaths / 100k aheadWHO GHO · 2021
- 4.2Very low
- 3.3Very low
- Disaster Risk aheadWorld Risk Index · 2022
- 1.300Very low
- 3.9Moderate
Health16
- Life ExpectancyLevelWorld Bank · 2024
- 82.3Very high
- 80.8Very high
- Infant Mortality aheadWorld Bank · 2024
- 1.900Very low
- 3.1Very low
- Healthcare Quality aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 77.6Excellent
- 72.4Good
- UHC Service CoverageLevelWHO GHO · 2023
- 86Very high
- 87Very high
- Physicians / 1k aheadWorld Bank · 2021–2022
- 3.6High
- 4.5Very high
- Hospital Beds aheadWorld Bank · 2022–2023
- 2.6Moderate
- 7.6Very high
- Out-of-Pocket Health % aheadWorld Bank · 2023–2024
- 14.1%Low
- 10.7%Very low
- Healthcare SpendWorld Bank · 2023–2024
- $5,515
- $6,849
- Clean WaterLevelWorld Bank · 2024
- 100%Very high
- 100%Very high
- PM2.5 concentration aheadWHO GHO · 2023
- 4.1Very low
- 8.7Low
- Air-pollution Deaths / 100k aheadWHO GHO · 2021
- 4.4Very low
- 14.3Very low
- Obesity aheadWHO GHO · 2024
- 24.2%Moderate
- 20.6%Moderate
- Tobacco UseLevelWHO GHO · 2022–2023
- 19.7%Moderate
- 19.7%Moderate
- Raised Blood Glucose aheadWHO GHO · 2014
- 5.3%Very low
- 5%Very low
- Suicide Rate / 100k aheadWHO GHO · 2021
- 14.6Very high
- 12.9High
- Alcohol L / capitaWHO GHO · 2024
- 9.4
- 10.9
Education and getting online9
- Tertiary Education aheadEurostat · 2025
- 42.7%High
- 35.4%Low
- PISA MathLevelOECD PISA Results · 2022
- 484High
- 475High
- PISA Reading aheadOECD PISA Results · 2022
- 490Very high
- 480High
- PISA Science aheadOECD PISA Results · 2022
- 511Very high
- 492High
- Education SpendWorld Bank · 2022
- 6.4%
- 5.2%
- English ProficiencyLevelEF English Proficiency Index · 2025
- 603Very high
- 615Very high
- InternetLevelWorld Bank · 2024
- 93.7%Very high
- 93.5%Very high
- Fixed broadband aheadOokla Speedtest Global Index · 2025
- 178 MbpsVery fast
- 103 MbpsVery fast
- Mobile internet aheadOokla Speedtest Global Index · 2025
- 160 MbpsVery high
- 75 MbpsModerate
Governance and freedom8
- Rule of Law aheadWorld Bank WGI · 2025
- 2.01Very high
- 1.60Very high
- Corruption aheadWorld Bank WGI · 2025
- 2.14Very high
- 1.68Very high
- Political Stability aheadWorld Bank WGI · 2025
- 0.96Very high
- 0.21Moderate
- Government Effectiveness aheadWorld Bank WGI · 2025
- 1.94Very high
- 1.49Very high
- Regulatory Quality aheadWorld Bank WGI · 2025
- 1.63Very high
- 1.22Very high
- Democracy aheadEIU Democracy Index · 2025
- 9.4Very high
- 8.7Very high
- Freedom House aheadFreedom House · 2025
- 100Very high
- 95Very high
- Press Freedom aheadRSF World Press Freedom Index · 2026
- 86.2Good
- 82.2Good
Quality of life10
- Human DevelopmentLevelUNDP Human Development Report · 2023
- 0.948Very high
- 0.959Very high
- Happiness aheadWorld Happiness Report · 2026
- 7.76Very high
- 6.88Moderate
- Quality of life index aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 204.5Very high
- 196.3Very high
- Climate index aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 54.4Fair
- 82.9Excellent
- WHR: GDPWorld Happiness Report · 2026
- 1.915
- 1.948
- WHR: Social SupportWorld Happiness Report · 2026
- 1.638
- 1.490
- WHR: Healthy Life Exp.World Happiness Report · 2026
- 0.939
- 0.876
- WHR: FreedomWorld Happiness Report · 2026
- 1.105
- 0.948
- WHR: GenerosityWorld Happiness Report · 2026
- 0.093
- 0.145
- WHR: Corruption TrustWorld Happiness Report · 2026
- 0.491
- 0.349
People and planet23
- PopulationWorld Bank · 2025
- 5,646,436
- 83,491,249
- AreaWorld Bank
- 303,960 km²
- 349,430 km²
- Median AgeWorld Bank age-group shares
- 44
- 43.9
- Population GrowthWorld Bank · 2025
- 0.47%
- -0.03%
- Urban PopulationWorld Bank · 2025
- 74.5%
- 82.1%
- Net MigrationWorld Bank · 2025
- 18,246
- -334,072
- Foreign-Born %UN DESA International Migrant Stock · 2024
- 9.2%
- 19.8%
- Fertility RateWorld Bank · 2024
- 1.25
- 1.36
- Avg Household SizeOECD Family Database · 2024
- 1.900
- 2
- Single-Person HouseholdsOECD Family Database · 2021
- 45.3%
- 43.1%
- Lone-Parent HouseholdsOECD Family Database · 2021
- 5.4%
- 5.4%
- ChristianPew Research · 2020
- 72.3%
- 56.2%
- MuslimPew Research · 2020
- 1.6%
- 6.5%
- HinduPew Research · 2020
- 0.1%
- 0.2%
- BuddhistPew Research · 2020
- 0.3%
- 0.3%
- JewishPew Research · 2020
- 0.1%
- 0.1%
- UnaffiliatedPew Research · 2020
- 25%
- 36.1%
- Other religionsPew Research · 2020
- 0.5%
- 0.4%
- CO₂ / Capita aheadWorld Bank · 2024
- 5.5High
- 6.9Very high
- Renewables aheadWorld Bank · 2021
- 50.2%High
- 17.6%Moderate
- Forest CoverWorld Bank · 2023
- 73.7%
- 32.7%
- Climate Vulnerability aheadND-GAIN Country Index · 2023
- 0.280Very low
- 0.301Very low
- Climate Readiness aheadND-GAIN Country Index · 2023
- 0.746Very high
- 0.682Very high
Other2
- Unmet Medical NeedEurostat · 2025
- 7.8%
- 1%
- Leisure TimeOECD Better Life Index · 2020
- 15.2
- 15.6
Quick answers
Is Finland cheaper than Germany?
Numbeo's 2026 cost-of-living index (NYC = 100) puts Finland at 69.0 and Germany at 68.7. The two are effectively tied (under 2% apart).
Is Finland or Germany safer?
On the Global Peace Index (lower = more peaceful), Finland scores 1.48 and Germany scores 1.66. Finland ranks as the more peaceful of the two.
Which has the higher quality of life, Finland or Germany?
On the UN Human Development Index, Finland scores 0.948 and Germany scores 0.959. The two are effectively tied. Single indexes hide trade-offs; the full comparison above shows where each country wins.
What is life like in Finland compared to Germany?
GNI per capita runs $55,250 in Finland against $60,200 in Germany; people live 82.3 years on average against 80.8; Numbeo users rate healthcare 78 against 72. Those are national averages and they hide the thing you actually feel: capital-city costs run well ahead of the national figure in most countries, and rural provision of healthcare and internet often lags the number shown here. The table below splits it indicator by indicator.