Germany
JapanCompare countries · Germany vs Japan
Germany vs Japan
GermanyWestern Europe
JapanEastern Asia
Japan is cheaper (cost of living 47.5 vs 68.7), more peaceful (Global Peace Index 1.489 vs 1.657) and has the longer life expectancy (84.0 vs 80.8 years).Germany scores higher on human development (0.959 vs 0.925) and has the higher income per person ($60,200 vs $38,340).
Safety
Japan is the more peaceful
- Global Peace Indexlower is more peaceful
- Germany1.657Very high safety#28 of 161IEP GPI · 2026
- Japan1.489Very high safety#10 of 161IEP GPI · 2026
- Homicidesper 100,000 people a year
- Germany0.9LowUNODC / World Bank · 2023
- Japan0.2Very lowUNODC / World Bank · 2023
- Safety indexNumbeo's safety index, higher is safer
- Germany61.6HighNumbeo · 2026
- Japan77.2Very highNumbeo · 2026
- UK travel adviceFCDO, for British travellers
- GermanyNo advice against travelFCDO foreign travel advice, GOV.UK · read 2026-10-12
- JapanNo advice against travelFCDO foreign travel advice, GOV.UK · read 2026-10-12
Money
Income per person is higher in Germany
- GNI per personnational income per person, US dollars
- Germany$60,200Very highWorld Bank · 2025
- Japan$38,340Very highWorld Bank · 2025
Health
People live longer in Japan
- Life expectancyyears, at birth
- Germany80.8Very high#39 of 195World Bank · 2024
- Japan84.0Very high#9 of 195World Bank · 2024
Work and internet
Broadband is faster in Japan
- Fixed broadbandmedian download speed
- Germany103 MbpsVery fast#62 of 149Ookla Speedtest · 2025
- Japan256 MbpsVery fast#17 of 149Ookla Speedtest · 2025
- Youth unemploymentshare of 15 to 24 year olds in the labour force
- Germany7.1%Very lowEurostat · 2025
- JapanNo figure from Eurostat
How it changed
Human development: Germany 0.959, Japan 0.925
GermanyJapan
UNDP Human Development Report, 1990–2023.
Practical facts
- Capital
- Berlin
- Tokyo
- Population
- 83.5M (2025)
- 123.4M (2025)
- Languages
- German
- Japanese
- Currency
- euro (EUR)
- Japanese yen (JPY)
- Area
- 349,430 km²
- 364,569 km²
- Plug type
- Type C/F
- Type A/B
- Drives on the
- right
- left
- Short visit
- Visa-free for UK and US; visa needed for EU
- Visa-free for UK, EU and US passports
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
Germany and Japan, side by side
Germany leads on 27 Japan on 298 level116 figures. 15 are 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 IncomeEurostat · 2025
- €28,891High
- —
- PPP / Cap aheadWorld Bank · 2025
- $75,407High
- $55,422High
- GDP / Cap aheadWorld Bank · 2025
- $60,496Very high
- $35,951Very high
- GNI / Cap aheadWorld Bank · 2025
- $60,200Very high
- $38,340Very high
- Local purchasing power aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 138.3Very high
- 118.3Very high
- Cost of Living aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 68.7Expensive
- 47.5Affordable
- Cost of living with rent aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 49Very high
- 32.8Moderate
- Rent index aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 24.6Very expensive
- 14.7Moderate
- Groceries index aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 64.9Very high
- 56.8High
- Restaurant prices index aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 66.9Very high
- 30.3Low
- Property Price-to-Income aheadNumbeo Property Investment · 2026
- 7.9Very affordable
- 11.4Moderate
- Price level ratio aheadWorld Bank ICP
- 1.382Very high
- 1.175High
- Housing OverburdenEurostat · 2025
- 11.2%Very high
- —
- Electricity PriceEurostat · 2025
- €0.387Very expensive
- —
- Energy PovertyEurostat · 2025
- 5.7%Moderate
- —
- Inflation aheadWorld Bank · 2025
- 2.2%Low
- 3.2%Moderate
- Pension Replacement aheadOECD Pensions at a Glance · 2024
- 42.1%Low
- 36.5%Very low
- Bank AccountLevelWorld Bank Global Findex · 2024
- 98.3%Very high
- 98.5%Very high
- Send Remittance aheadWorld Bank Remittance Prices Worldwide · 2023
- 3%Moderate
- 2.6%Low
- Tax WedgeOECD Taxing Wages · 2025
- 49.3%
- 33.1%
- Top Income TaxWikipedia · 2024
- 45%
- 50.5%
- Corporate TaxWikipedia · 2024
- 30%
- 29.7%
- VAT / GSTWikipedia · 2024
- 19%
- 10%
- Tax RevenueWorld Bank · 2024
- 10.9%
- —
- GDP (total)World Bank · 2025
- $5,051 bn
- $4,435 bn
- FDI InflowsWorld Bank · 2025
- 1.9%
- 1%
- Innovation aheadWIPO Global Innovation Index · 2025
- 55.5Very high
- 53.6Very high
Work4
- UnemploymentWorld Bank · 2025
- 3.7%
- 2.5%
- Youth UnemploymentEurostat · 2025
- 7.1%Very low
- —
- Long Work HoursOECD Better Life Index · 2020
- 3.9%Low
- —
- Public Holidaysdate.nager.at · 2025
- 14
- 16
Equality7
- Income InequalityWorld Bank · 2022
- 33.7Moderate
- —
- Income Share Bot. 20%World Bank · 2022
- 6.9Low
- —
- Income Share Top 10%World Bank · 2022
- 26.2Moderate
- —
- Poverty RateWorld Bank · 2022
- 1.6%Low
- —
- Poverty RiskEurostat · 2025
- 16.1%Moderate
- —
- Gender Inequality aheadUNDP Human Development Report · 2023
- 0.057Very low
- 0.059Very low
- Inequality-Adj. HDI aheadUNDP HDR
- 0.890Very high
- 0.845Very high
Safety10
- Peace Index aheadIEP Global Peace Index · 2026
- 1.657Very high safety
- 1.489Very high safety
- Safety aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 61.6High
- 77.2Very high
- Homicides / 100k aheadUNODC / World Bank · 2023
- 0.9Low
- 0.2Very low
- Crime PerceptionEurostat · 2023
- 10.7%High
- —
- Assault Rate aheadUNODC CTS · 2023
- 182.8High
- 17.8Low
- Robbery Rate aheadUNODC CTS · 2023
- 53.1High
- 1.1Very low
- Sexual Violence Rate aheadUNODC CTS · 2023
- 62.3High
- 7.1Low
- Kidnapping Rate aheadUNODC CTS · 2023
- 6Very high
- 0.42Moderate
- Road Deaths / 100k aheadWHO GHO · 2021
- 3.3Very low
- 2.7Very low
- Disaster Risk aheadWorld Risk Index · 2022
- 3.9Moderate
- 17Very high
Health16
- Life Expectancy aheadWorld Bank · 2024
- 80.8Very high
- 84.0Very high
- Infant Mortality aheadWorld Bank · 2024
- 3.1Very low
- 1.800Very low
- Healthcare Quality aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 72.4Good
- 80.1Excellent
- UHC Service CoverageLevelWHO GHO · 2023
- 87Very high
- 86Very high
- Physicians / 1k aheadWorld Bank · 2022
- 4.5Very high
- 2.7High
- Hospital Beds aheadWorld Bank · 2022–2023
- 7.6Very high
- 12.6Very high
- Out-of-Pocket Health % aheadWorld Bank · 2023–2024
- 10.7%Very low
- 12.2%Very low
- Healthcare SpendWorld Bank · 2023–2024
- $6,849
- $3,638
- Clean WaterLevelWorld Bank · 2024
- 100%Very high
- 99.2%High
- PM2.5 concentration aheadWHO GHO · 2023
- 8.7Low
- 8.5Very low
- Air-pollution Deaths / 100k aheadWHO GHO · 2021
- 14.3Very low
- 9.2Very low
- Obesity aheadWHO GHO · 2024
- 20.6%Moderate
- 5.9%Very low
- Tobacco Use aheadWHO GHO · 2022–2023
- 19.7%Moderate
- 16.3%Moderate
- Raised Blood Glucose aheadWHO GHO · 2014
- 5%Very low
- 6.7%Low
- Suicide Rate / 100k aheadWHO GHO · 2021
- 12.9High
- 17.4Very high
- Alcohol L / capitaWHO GHO · 2024
- 10.9
- 6.3
Education and getting online9
- Tertiary EducationEurostat · 2025
- 35.4%Low
- —
- PISA Math aheadOECD PISA Results · 2022
- 475High
- 536Very high
- PISA Reading aheadOECD PISA Results · 2022
- 480High
- 516Very high
- PISA Science aheadOECD PISA Results · 2022
- 492High
- 547Very high
- Education SpendWorld Bank · 2021–2022
- 5.2%
- 3.3%
- English Proficiency aheadEF English Proficiency Index · 2025
- 615Very high
- 446Very low
- Internet aheadWorld Bank · 2024
- 93.5%Very high
- 85.5%Moderate
- Fixed broadband aheadOokla Speedtest Global Index · 2025
- 103 MbpsVery fast
- 256 MbpsVery fast
- Mobile internet aheadOokla Speedtest Global Index · 2025
- 75 MbpsModerate
- 69 MbpsLow
Governance and freedom8
- Rule of Law aheadWorld Bank WGI · 2025
- 1.60Very high
- 1.54Very high
- Corruption aheadWorld Bank WGI · 2025
- 1.68Very high
- 1.45Very high
- Political Stability aheadWorld Bank WGI · 2025
- 0.21Moderate
- 1.26Very high
- Government Effectiveness aheadWorld Bank WGI · 2025
- 1.49Very high
- 2.04Very high
- Regulatory QualityLevelWorld Bank WGI · 2025
- 1.22Very high
- 1.22Very high
- DemocracyLevelEIU Democracy Index · 2025
- 8.7Very high
- 8.9Very high
- Freedom HouseLevelFreedom House · 2025
- 95Very high
- 96Very high
- Press Freedom aheadRSF World Press Freedom Index · 2026
- 82.2Good
- 62.9Satisfactory
Quality of life10
- Human Development aheadUNDP Human Development Report · 2023
- 0.959Very high
- 0.925Very high
- Happiness aheadWorld Happiness Report · 2026
- 6.88Moderate
- 6.13Moderate
- Quality of life index aheadNumbeo · 2026
- 196.3Very high
- 185.6Very high
- Climate indexLevelNumbeo · 2026
- 82.9Excellent
- 83.8Excellent
- WHR: GDPWorld Happiness Report · 2026
- 1.948
- 1.858
- WHR: Social SupportWorld Happiness Report · 2026
- 1.490
- 1.414
- WHR: Healthy Life Exp.World Happiness Report · 2026
- 0.876
- 1.041
- WHR: FreedomWorld Happiness Report · 2026
- 0.948
- 0.875
- WHR: GenerosityWorld Happiness Report · 2026
- 0.145
- 0.019
- WHR: Corruption TrustWorld Happiness Report · 2026
- 0.349
- 0.202
People and planet23
- PopulationWorld Bank · 2025
- 83,491,249
- 123,366,734
- AreaWorld Bank
- 349,430 km²
- 364,569 km²
- Median AgeWorld Bank age-group shares
- 43.9
- 48
- Population GrowthWorld Bank · 2025
- -0.03%
- -0.49%
- Urban PopulationWorld Bank · 2025
- 82.1%
- 92.3%
- Net MigrationWorld Bank · 2025
- -334,072
- 140,579
- Foreign-Born %UN DESA International Migrant Stock · 2024
- 19.8%
- 2.8%
- Fertility RateWorld Bank · 2024
- 1.36
- 1.15
- Avg Household SizeOECD Family Database · 2024
- 2
- 2.2
- Single-Person HouseholdsOECD Family Database · 2021
- 43.1%
- 38%
- Lone-Parent HouseholdsOECD Family Database · 2021
- 5.4%
- 2.5%
- ChristianPew Research · 2020
- 56.2%
- 2.2%
- MuslimPew Research · 2020
- 6.5%
- 0.2%
- HinduPew Research · 2020
- 0.2%
- 0%
- BuddhistPew Research · 2020
- 0.3%
- 37.2%
- JewishPew Research · 2020
- 0.1%
- 0%
- UnaffiliatedPew Research · 2020
- 36.1%
- 57.5%
- Other religionsPew Research · 2020
- 0.4%
- 2.9%
- CO₂ / Capita aheadWorld Bank · 2024
- 6.9Very high
- 7.8Very high
- Renewables aheadWorld Bank · 2021
- 17.6%Moderate
- 8.8%Low
- Forest CoverWorld Bank · 2023
- 32.7%
- 68.4%
- Climate Vulnerability aheadND-GAIN Country Index · 2023
- 0.301Very low
- 0.369Low
- Climate ReadinessLevelND-GAIN Country Index · 2023
- 0.682Very high
- 0.685Very high
Other2
- Unmet Medical NeedEurostat · 2025
- 1%
- —
- Leisure TimeOECD Better Life Index · 2020
- 15.6
- 14.1
Quick answers
Is Germany cheaper than Japan?
Numbeo's 2026 cost-of-living index (NYC = 100) puts Germany at 68.7 and Japan at 47.5. Japan is about 31% cheaper overall.
Is Germany or Japan safer?
On the Global Peace Index (lower = more peaceful), Germany scores 1.66 and Japan scores 1.49. Japan ranks as the more peaceful of the two.
Which has the higher quality of life, Germany or Japan?
On the UN Human Development Index, Germany scores 0.959 and Japan scores 0.925. Germany scores higher on this composite of income, health and education. Single indexes hide trade-offs; the full comparison above shows where each country wins.
What is life like in Germany compared to Japan?
GNI per capita runs $60,200 in Germany against $38,340 in Japan; people live 80.8 years on average against 84.0; Numbeo users rate healthcare 72 against 80. 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.