Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Japan fits inside Australia 20 times
Australia: 7,741,220 km² (2024) · Japan: 377,975 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
Japan’s coastline is 15% longer than Australia’s
Australia: 25,760 km (2026 edition) · Japan: 29,751 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Japan’s highest peak towers 1,548 m above Australia’s
Australia: 2,228 m (2026 edition) · Japan: 3,776 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 47% of Australia, versus 13% of Japan
Australia: 47.3% (2024) · Japan: 12.6% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Japan has 4.5 times as many people as Australia
Australia: 27.6 million (2025) · Japan: 123 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Japan is 94 times as densely populated as Australia
Australia: 4 per km² (2025) · Japan: 338 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Australia are 6.7 cm taller than in Japan
Australia: 178.8 cm (2019) · Japan: 172.1 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Australia are 6.2 cm taller than in Japan
Australia: 164.7 cm (2019) · Japan: 158.5 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Japan is 11 years older than in Australia
Australia: 37.8 years (2023) · Japan: 49 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Australia have 0.3 more children on average than in Japan
Australia: 1.48 children per woman (2024) · Japan: 1.15 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
30% of people in Japan are 65 or older, versus 18% in Australia
Australia: 18.1% (2025) · Japan: 30% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
Australia hosts 3.5 times as many refugees per resident as Japan
Australia: 1.2 per 1,000 (2025) · Japan: 0.3 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Australia has produced 3.6 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Japan 2.5
Australia: 3.6 (2026) · Japan: 2.5 (2026)
How many official languages?
Australia and Japan are practically level
Australia: 1 (2026) · Japan: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Japan’s economy is 2.5 times the size of Australia’s
Australia: $1.8 trillion (2025) · Japan: $4.44 trillion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Australia produces 30% more per person than Japan
Australia: Int$71,934 (2025) · Japan: Int$55,422 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Australia than in Japan (Gini 1.5 points higher)
Australia: 33.8 (2020) · Japan: 32.3 (2020)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
Japan and Australia are practically level
Australia: 0.9% (2020) · Japan: 1.2% (2020)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 4.1% in Australia, versus 2.5% in Japan
Australia: 4.1% (2025) · Japan: 2.5% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Australia spends 1.9% of its GDP on the military, Japan 1.4%
Australia: 1.9% (2025) · Japan: 1.4% (2025)
How much does the central government collect in tax?
Australia: 23.6% (2022) · Japan: no data
How expensive is it?
Australia’s price level (US = 100) is 1.4× Japan’s
Australia: 91% (2025) · Japan: 65% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Australia spends 92% more on health per person than Japan
Australia: $6,980 (2023) · Japan: $3,638 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Japan live 0.99 year longer than in Australia
Australia: 83.1 years (2024) · Japan: 84 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Australia is 72% more likely to die before turning one than in Japan
Australia: 3.1 per 1,000 (2024) · Japan: 1.8 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Australia has 54% more doctors per person than Japan
Australia: 4.1 per 1,000 (2022) · Japan: 2.6 per 1,000 (2022)
How many hospital beds are there?
Japan has 3.3 times as many hospital beds per person as Australia
Australia: 3.8 per 1,000 (2016) · Japan: 12.6 per 1,000 (2022)
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in Japan is 14% higher than in Australia
Australia: 12.6 per 100k (2023) · Japan: 14.4 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
32% of adults in Australia are obese, versus 5.2% in Japan
Australia: 32.4% (2024) · Japan: 5.2% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
18% of adults in Japan smoke, versus 12% in Australia
Australia: 11.6% (2024) · Japan: 17.5% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Australia rate their lives 0.79 points higher than in Japan
Australia: 6.92 (2025) · Japan: 6.13 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Australia drink 68% more alcohol than in Japan
Australia: 10.5 litres (2023) · Japan: 6.3 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Australia has 95% more meat per person than Japan
Australia: 116.8 kg (2023) · Japan: 59.9 kg (2022)
How much food is there per day?
Australia has 892 kcal more food per person per day than Japan
Australia: 3,562 kcal (2023) · Japan: 2,670 kcal (2022)
How long do people work?
Workers in Japan put in 43 more hours a year than in Australia
Australia: 1,611 hours (2023) · Japan: 1,654 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Australia went to school 0.19 years longer than in Japan
Australia: 12.9 years (2023) · Japan: 12.7 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Australia: no data · Japan: 0.3 (2024)
How many World Heritage sites?
Japan has 6 more World Heritage sites than Australia (27 against 21)
Australia: 21 (2026) · Japan: 27 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
Japan has won 642 Olympic medals, Australia 619
Australia: 619 (2026 edition) · Japan: 642 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
96% of people in Australia are online, versus 86% in Japan
Australia: 96% (2024) · Japan: 86% (2024)
How fast is home internet?
Home internet in Japan is 24% faster than in Australia
Australia: 261 Mbps (2026) · Japan: 322 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
Australia and Japan are practically level
Australia: 100% (2024) · Japan: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
92% of people in Japan live in cities, versus 88% in Australia
Australia: 88% (2025) · Japan: 92% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Japan has 178 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Australia 113
Australia: 113 (2024) · Japan: 178 (2023)
How much railway is there?
Australia’s railway network is 62% longer than Japan’s
Australia: 32,606 km (2022) · Japan: 20,087 km (2011)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Australia fly 2.6 times as many passengers per resident as those from Japan
Australia: 2.5 (2023) · Japan: 0.98 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 68% of Japan, but only 17% of Australia
Australia: 17.4% (2024) · Japan: 68.3% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Australia emits 86% more CO₂ than someone in Japan
Australia: 14.5 t (2024) · Japan: 7.8 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
39% of Australia’s electricity is renewable, versus 24% in Japan
Australia: 38.6% (2025) · Japan: 23.6% (2025)
How clean is the air?
The air in Japan carries 94% more fine dust than in Australia
Australia: 5.4 µg/m³ (2024) · Japan: 10.5 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 3.7 times as likely to be murdered in Australia as in Japan
Australia: 0.9 per 100k (2023) · Japan: 0.2 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Australia are 2 times as deadly as in Japan
Australia: 7.5 per 100k (2023) · Japan: 3.8 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Australia is on average 9.7 °C warmer than Japan
Australia: 22.5°C (2016–2025 avg) · Japan: 12.8°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Japan gets 4.1 times as much rain as Australia
Australia: 447 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Japan: 1,824 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Between them
People, goods and passports that cross from one to the other
Quick answers
Is Australia bigger than Japan?
Australia is larger. Japan fits inside Australia 20 times.
Which has more people, Australia or Japan?
Japan has 4.5 times as many people as Australia (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Australia or Japan?
People in Japan live 0.99 year longer than in Australia. Life expectancy at birth is 83.1 years in Australia and 84.0 in Japan.
Are people taller in Australia or Japan?
Men in Australia are 6.7 cm taller than in Japan (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).