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COUNTRY PROFILE / BEL

Belgium

Belgium / BE

01 / BASIC INFORMATION

Belgium in numbers.

Area30,689 kmยฒWorld # 137 โ†’Population11.9MWorld # 81 โ†’Population density389.1 people/kmยฒWorld # 28 โ†’Life expectancy82.3 yearsWorld # 31 โ†’GDP per capitaUS$ 60,750World # 21 โ†’

02 / ALL RANKINGS

Belgium across 51 rankings.

Essentials

Area30,689 kmยฒWorld # 137 / 2023 โ†’Population11.9MWorld # 81 / 2025 โ†’Population density389.1 people/kmยฒWorld # 28 / Population 2025 ยท area 2023 โ†’Independence / founding reference year1,830World # 151 / CIA World Factbook 2025 archive โ†’

People & society

Population growth0.7%World # 121 / 2025 โ†’Total fertility rate1.4World # 165 / 2024 โ†’Birth rate9.2 per 1,000 peopleWorld # 168 / 2024 โ†’Death rate9.5 per 1,000 peopleWorld # 50 / 2024 โ†’Median age41.4 yearsWorld # 45 / 2023 โ†’Population aged 65+21%World # 28 / 2025 โ†’Population aged 0โ€“1415.7%World # 169 / 2025 โ†’Urban population87.7%World # 42 / 2025 โ†’Net migration32KWorld # 27 / 2025 โ†’Net migration rate2.7 per 1,000 peopleWorld # 39 / 2025 โ†’International migrant share20%World # 44 / 2024 โ†’

Health

Life expectancy82.3 yearsWorld # 31 / 2024 โ†’Healthy life expectancy69.8 yearsWorld # 21 / 2021 โ†’Physicians per 1,000 people3.6 per 1,000 peopleWorld # 44 / 2022 โ†’Smoking rate23.5%World # 57 / 2024 โ†’

Economy & work

GDP per capitaUS$ 60,750World # 21 / 2025 โ†’Nominal GDPUS$ 725.5BWorld # 22 / 2025 โ†’GDP per capita (PPP)US$ 74,676World # 24 / 2025 โ†’Real GDP growth1%World # 175 / 2025 โ†’Inflation2.5%World # 109 / 2025 โ†’Unemployment5.9%World # 80 / 2025 โ†’Youth unemployment17.8%World # 64 / 2025 โ†’Average annual working hours1,593 hours/yearWorld # 111 / 2023 โ†’Average sleep time8.4 hours/dayWorld # 7 / Approximately 1998โ€“2006 โ†’Income inequality (Gini index)26.8World # 151 / 2023 โ†’

Education & science

Education spending (% of GDP)6.3%World # 23 / 2022 โ†’Researchers per million people5,990.1 per million peopleWorld # 11 / 2023 โ†’R&D spending (% of GDP)3.3%World # 7 / 2023 โ†’Patent applications per million people66.9 per million peopleWorld # 31 / 2021 โ†’

Food & agriculture

Calorie supply per person3,921 kcal/dayWorld # 2 / 2023 โ†’Meat supply per person60 kg/person/yearWorld # 90 / 2023 โ†’Rice production0 tWorld # 120 / 2024 โ†’Wheat production1.1M tWorld # 51 / 2024 โ†’Coffee productionNo dataNo rank โ†’Coffee consumption per personNo dataNo rank โ†’

Environment & digital

Forest area22.6%World # 125 / 2023 โ†’Electricity use per person7,099 kWh/personWorld # 24 / 2024 โ†’COโ‚‚ emissions per person7.3 tWorld # 38 / 2024 โ†’Internet use95.8%World # 23 / 2024 โ†’Mobile subscriptions103.9 per 100 peopleWorld # 134 / 2024 โ†’

Safety & politics

Homicide rate1.1 per 100,000 peopleWorld # 138 / 2021 โ†’Road traffic death rate5.8 per 100,000 peopleWorld # 155 / 2019 โ†’Military spending (% of GDP)1.3%World # 101 / 2024 โ†’Women in parliament41.3%World # 24 / 2025 โ†’

Travel & culture

International tourist arrivals2.6MWorld # 57 / 2020 โ†’International tourism receiptsUS$ 7.4BWorld # 27 / 2020 โ†’World Heritage sites16 sitesWorld # 22 / 2026-07 โ†’

03 / CULTURE & INDUSTRY

Society, culture and industry.

Largest religious groupChristianity2018 / 59.4%Main languageEnglishMain functional languageLeading electricity sourceNuclear2025Top export categoryChemicals and pharmaceuticals2023Most mapped OSM sportRacket sports20,939 facilities countedWriting directionLeft to rightEnglishLargest staple-food calorie sourceWheat2023Current currencyEuroEURDriving sideRight-hand trafficSide of the road used by trafficCountry-name originPlaces and landformsGallia Belgica, Belgae