Austria vs Netherlands development indicators, 2024

Demography and Health

Austria and the Netherlands exhibit distinct demographic and health indicators. Austria has a crude birth rate of 8.5 per 1,000 people, while the Netherlands slightly exceeds this with a rate of 9.2, ranking 36th globally, compared to Austria's 50th rank. Both countries face relatively high death rates, with Austria at 9.8 and the Netherlands at 9.5; their ranks are 54th and 62nd respectively. Life expectancy is comparable, with Austria at 81.5 years and the Netherlands at 81.9 years. However, Austria has a lower under-5 mortality rate at 3.1 per 1,000 live births than the Netherlands, which reports 4.0. Additionally, both nations show a prevalence of undernourishment at 2.5%. Austria's net migration is significantly lower than that of the Netherlands, with 8,813 compared to 121,628 in the latter.

Economy

In economic terms, the Netherlands surpasses Austria in key indicators. The GDP per capita in the Netherlands stands at $68,219, compared to Austria's $56,833, placing both countries in ranks 12 and 19 respectively. When adjusted for purchasing power parity (PPP), the Netherlands again leads with $84,218 versus Austria's $71,618, ranking 9th and 17th. High-technology exports further highlight this economic divergence: the Netherlands reaches $111 billion, well above Austria’s $27.3 billion. Austria's inflation rate in 2024 is 2.9%, a bit lower than the Netherlands’ 3.3%.

Trade and Investment

Trade metrics show that the Netherlands has a far higher reliance on trade, with exports of goods and services accounting for 84.1% of GDP, compared to Austria's 56.9%. Conversely, Austria also has a lower import proportion at 53.6% of GDP versus the Netherlands’ 72%. In terms of foreign direct investment (FDI), Austria has a net inflow of 1.8% of GDP while the Netherlands experiences a negative net inflow of -1.1%, indicating potential challenges in attracting foreign investment in the latter.

Governance and Institutions

Governance indicators reveal both strengths and weaknesses in Austria and the Netherlands. The Netherlands tends to perform better on several governance metrics, notably in control of corruption with a score of 1.9, compared to Austria’s 1.1. The government effectiveness index similarly shows the Netherlands leading at 1.6 versus Austria’s 1.3. Austria ranks better on regulatory quality (1.4 vs. 1.8) and rule of law (1.7 vs. 1.6). Nevertheless, both countries score relatively close on the political stability index, evidencing their stability despite the varying scores in other governance areas.

Infrastructure and Technology

Austria scores well in terms of logistics performance, ranking 7th globally with a score of 3.9, although the Netherlands outperforms with a score of 4.2 (ranked 2nd). Notably, Austria leads in patent applications per resident (1,872) compared to the Netherlands’ 2,080, indicating a robust innovative capacity. Both countries actively invest in research and development, with Austria allocating 3.2% of GDP to R&D, significantly higher than the Netherlands' 2.3%.

Environment and Sustainability

In environmental terms, Austria demonstrates a strong commitment to renewable energy, with 36% of its total energy consumption derived from renewables, ranking 6th globally, while the Netherlands lags at 12.2%, ranking 25th. Both countries face similar levels of water stress, but Austria shows an impressive performance with only 8.7% freshwater withdrawal from available resources versus the Netherlands’ 16.1%. Additionally, both nations have comparable per capita greenhouse gas emissions, with Austria at 8.0 tons CO2e and the Netherlands at 8.4 tons, highlighting challenges they face in sustainability.