The duel
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
The Netherlands fits inside the Philippines 7.2 times.
Netherlands: 41,540 km² (2023) · Philippines: 300,000 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
The Philippines’ coastline is 80 times as long as the Netherlands’.
Netherlands: 451 km (2026 edition) · Philippines: 36,289 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
The Philippines’ highest peak towers 2,092 m above the Netherlands’.
Netherlands: 862 m (2026 edition) · Philippines: 2,954 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
The Philippines has 6.5 times as many people as the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 18.1 million (2025) · Philippines: 117 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
The Netherlands is 37% more densely populated than the Philippines.
Netherlands: 537 per km² (2025) · Philippines: 392 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in the Netherlands are 18.6 cm taller than in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 183.8 cm (2019) · Philippines: 165.2 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in the Netherlands are 16.2 cm taller than in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 170.4 cm (2019) · Philippines: 154.1 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in the Netherlands is 16 years older than in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 41.4 years (2023) · Philippines: 25.3 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in the Philippines have 0.5 more children on average than in the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 1.43 children per woman (2024) · Philippines: 1.89 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
21% of people in the Netherlands are 65 or older, versus 5.7% in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 20.9% (2025) · Philippines: 5.7% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
The Netherlands has produced 11.1 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, the Philippines 0.1.
Netherlands: 11.1 (2025) · Philippines: 0.1 (2025)
How many official languages?
The Philippines has 2 official languages, the Netherlands 1.
Netherlands: 1 (2026) · Philippines: 2 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
The Netherlands’ economy is 2.7 times the size of the Philippines’.
Netherlands: $1.33 trillion (2025) · Philippines: $487 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
The Netherlands produces 6.9 times as much per person as the Philippines.
Netherlands: Int$87,320 (2025) · Philippines: Int$12,577 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in the Philippines than in the Netherlands (Gini 13.6 points higher).
Netherlands: 25.7 (2021) · Philippines: 39.3 (2023)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 3.9% in the Netherlands, versus 2.2% in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 3.9% (2025) · Philippines: 2.2% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
The Netherlands spends 1.9% of its GDP on the military, the Philippines 1.3%.
Netherlands: 1.9% (2024) · Philippines: 1.3% (2024)
How expensive is it?
The Netherlands’ price level (US = 100) is 2.5× the Philippines’.
Netherlands: 84% (2025) · Philippines: 33% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The Netherlands spends 35 times as much on health per person as the Philippines.
Netherlands: $6,845 (2024) · Philippines: $194 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in the Netherlands live 12 years longer than in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 82 years (2024) · Philippines: 69.9 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in the Philippines is 6.4 times as likely to die before turning one as in the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 3.4 per 1,000 (2024) · Philippines: 21.7 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
The Netherlands has 4.9 times as many doctors per person as the Philippines.
Netherlands: 3.9 per 1,000 (2022) · Philippines: 0.8 per 1,000 (2021)
How common is obesity?
17% of adults in the Netherlands are obese, versus 9.7% in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 16.9% (2024) · Philippines: 9.7% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
21% of adults in the Netherlands smoke, versus 20% in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 20.5% (2024) · Philippines: 19.9% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in the Netherlands rate their lives 1.02 points higher than in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 7.22 (2025) · Philippines: 6.21 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in the Netherlands drink 40% more alcohol than in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 8.6 litres (2023) · Philippines: 6.1 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
The Netherlands has 2.1 times as much meat per person as the Philippines.
Netherlands: 71.6 kg (2023) · Philippines: 33.6 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
The Netherlands has 484 kcal more food per person per day than the Philippines.
Netherlands: 3,467 kcal (2023) · Philippines: 2,983 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in the Philippines put in 657 more hours a year than in the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 1,439 hours (2023) · Philippines: 2,096 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in the Netherlands went to school 2.7 years longer than in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 12.7 years (2023) · Philippines: 10 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
The Netherlands welcomed 39 times as many tourists per resident as the Philippines (2019).
Netherlands: 0.91 (2022) · Philippines: 0.02 (2022)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
97% of people in the Netherlands are online, versus 67% in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 97% (2024) · Philippines: 67% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
100% of people in the Netherlands have electricity, versus 95% in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 100% (2024) · Philippines: 94.8% (2024)
How many live in cities?
96% of people in the Netherlands live in cities, versus 56% in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 96% (2025) · Philippines: 56% (2025)
How many phones per person?
The Netherlands has 129 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, the Philippines 115.
Netherlands: 129 (2024) · Philippines: 115 (2024)
How much railway is there?
The Netherlands’ railway network is 6 times as long as the Philippines’.
Netherlands: 3,041 km (2021) · Philippines: 509 km (2016)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the Netherlands fly 6.4 times as many passengers per resident as those from the Philippines.
Netherlands: 2.29 (2023) · Philippines: 0.36 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 24% of the Philippines, but only 11% of the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 11.1% (2023) · Philippines: 24.5% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in the Netherlands emits 4.2 times as much CO₂ as someone in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 6.3 t (2024) · Philippines: 1.5 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
51% of the Netherlands’ electricity is renewable, versus 23% in the Philippines.
Netherlands: 51.2% (2025) · Philippines: 23.3% (2025)
How clean is the air?
The air in the Philippines carries 2.4 times as much fine dust as in the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 9.6 µg/m³ (2024) · Philippines: 23.1 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 6.3 times as likely to be murdered in the Philippines as in the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 0.7 per 100k (2023) · Philippines: 4.3 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in the Philippines are 2.9 times as deadly as in the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 3.4 per 100k (2021) · Philippines: 9.7 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
The Philippines is on average 15.2 °C warmer than the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 11.2°C (2016–2025 avg) · Philippines: 26.4°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
The Philippines gets 3.4 times as much rain as the Netherlands.
Netherlands: 887 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Philippines: 3,001 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is the Netherlands bigger than the Philippines?
The Philippines is larger. The Netherlands fits inside the Philippines 7.2 times.
Which has more people, the Netherlands or the Philippines?
The Philippines has 6.5 times as many people as the Netherlands (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, the Netherlands or the Philippines?
People in the Netherlands live 12 years longer than in the Philippines. Life expectancy at birth is 82.0 years in the Netherlands and 69.9 in the Philippines.
Are people taller in the Netherlands or the Philippines?
Men in the Netherlands are 18.6 cm taller than in the Philippines (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
