Belgium
BE
Belgium vs France
Compare Belgium and France using 17 indicators with exactly comparable years.
Compare Belgium and France using 17 indicators with exactly comparable years.
France
FR
Shared indicators
17
Belgium better
13
France better
4
Tie
0
Belgium(BE)
Indicators comparison
France(FR)
6.2%
Unemployment rate
i
Measures unemployed people as a percentage of the labour force aged 15 to 74.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: Belgium
7.7%
11%
Jobless Households
i
Measures people aged 0 to 64 living in households where working-age members worked 20% or less of their combined potential working time during the previous year. Eurostat excludes specified groups such as certain students and retired people from the work-intensity calculation.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: France
8.9%
5.1%
Housing & Utility Bill Arrears
i
Measures the share of people living in households with arrears on mortgage or rent payments, utility bills, or hire-purchase instalments.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: Belgium
10.4%
102.4 index
Home Price Affordability
i
Measures the relationship between house prices and household income as a standardised index, with the long-term average set to 100. Values above 100 indicate that house prices are high relative to income compared with that long-term average.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: France
95.5 index
6.7%
Housing Affordability
i
Measures the share of people living in households where total housing costs exceed 40% of disposable household income.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: France
6.4%
6.6%
Overcrowded Housing
i
Measures the share of people living in a dwelling with fewer rooms than required under the Eurostat overcrowding standard. The minimum number of rooms depends on household composition and the ages of its members.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: Belgium
10.8%
4.2%
Energy Poverty / Cold Homes
i
Measures the share of people living in households that cannot afford to keep their home adequately warm.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: Belgium
11.5%
114
GDP per Capita
i
Measures GDP per inhabitant after adjusting for differences in price levels between countries using purchasing power standards (PPS). The EU27 average is set to 100, so values above or below 100 indicate a level above or below the EU average for that year. The index is primarily intended for cross-country comparison and changes over time should not be interpreted as real GDP growth.
Interpretation: Higher values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: Belgium
98
23.4 index
Income Inequality (Gini Index)
i
Measures inequality in the distribution of equivalised disposable income. A value of 0 represents complete equality and 100 represents maximum inequality.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: Belgium
30.4 index
3.25 ratio
Income Inequality (Rich-Poor Gap)
i
Measures the ratio between the total equivalised disposable income received by the highest-income 20% of the population and that received by the lowest-income 20%. A ratio of 5 means the top fifth receives five times as much income as the bottom fifth.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: Belgium
4.74 ratio
10.9%
Poverty Rate
i
Measures the share of people whose equivalised disposable income after social transfers is below 60% of the national median. It is a relative-income measure rather than a measure of absolute poverty.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: Belgium
16.3%
16.5%
Poverty & Social Exclusion Risk
i
Measures the share of people experiencing at least one of three conditions: risk of poverty after social transfers, severe material and social deprivation, or living in a household with very low work intensity. People meeting more than one condition are counted only once.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: Belgium
20.8%
22.1%
Financial Vulnerability
i
Measures the share of people living in households that cannot afford to meet an unexpected necessary financial expense from their available resources.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: Belgium
28.8%
82.4 years
Life Expectancy
i
Measures the average number of years a newborn would live if the age-specific mortality conditions observed in the reference period remained applicable throughout life.
Interpretation: Higher values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: France
83 years
9.4%
Material and Social Deprivation
i
Measures the share of people who, because they cannot afford them, lack at least 5 of 13 specified material or social items considered relevant to an adequate standard of living.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: Belgium
13.3%
2.1 rooms/person
Housing Space per Person
i
Measures the average number of rooms available in a household relative to the number of people living there, using Eurostat rules on which habitable spaces count as rooms.
Interpretation: Higher values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: Belgium
1.8 rooms/person
4.9%
Severe Material Deprivation
i
Measures the share of people who, because they cannot afford them, lack at least 7 of the 13 material or social items used in the Eurostat material and social deprivation framework.
Interpretation: Lower values indicate a more favorable outcome.
Eurostat ↗Better outcomeBetter: Belgium
7%
Indicative result based on the count of shared indicators. Each indicator uses the latest exact year available for both countries, and no weighted composite score is applied.
View data table
| Indicator | Country A value | Country B value | Better outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rate | 6.2% | 7.7% | Belgium |
| Persons living in households with very low work intensity (0 to 64 years) | 11% | 8.9% | France |
| Arrears on housing or utility bills | 5.1% | 10.4% | Belgium |
| House price to income ratio | 102.4 index | 95.5 index | France |
| Housing cost overburden rate | 6.7% | 6.4% | France |
| Overcrowding rate | 6.6% | 10.8% | Belgium |
| Inability to keep home adequately warm | 4.2% | 11.5% | Belgium |
| GDP per capita in PPS | 114 | 98 | Belgium |
| Gini coefficient | 23.4 index | 30.4 index | Belgium |
| Income quintile share ratio S80/S20 | 3.25 ratio | 4.74 ratio | Belgium |
| At-risk-of-poverty rate | 10.9% | 16.3% | Belgium |
| Persons at risk of poverty or social exclusion | 16.5% | 20.8% | Belgium |
| Inability to face unexpected financial expenses | 22.1% | 28.8% | Belgium |
| Life expectancy at birth | 82.4 years | 83 years | France |
| Material and social deprivation rate | 9.4% | 13.3% | Belgium |
| Average number of rooms per person | 2.1 rooms/person | 1.8 rooms/person | Belgium |
| Severe material and social deprivation rate | 4.9% | 7% | Belgium |
Housing & Energy Costs: mixed signals
Belgium has the more favorable reading on Energy Poverty / Cold Homes, while France has it on Home Price Affordability. Against the European benchmark, Belgium is on the favorable side and France on the adverse side for Energy Poverty / Cold Homes. For Home Price Affordability, Belgium is on the adverse side of the European benchmark and France on the favorable side.
Topic: Housing & Energy Costs
Primary indicator: Energy Poverty / Cold Homes
Year: 2025
Difference: strong
Income & Purchasing Power: more favorable reading for Belgium
Belgium has the more favorable reading on Income Inequality (Gini Index) compared with France. Against the European benchmark, Belgium is on the favorable side and France on the adverse side for Income Inequality (Gini Index).
Topic: Income & Purchasing Power
Primary indicator: Income Inequality (Gini Index)
Year: 2025
Difference: strong
Poverty & Financial Hardship: more favorable reading for Belgium
Belgium has the more favorable reading on Poverty Rate compared with France. Against the European benchmark, Belgium is on the favorable side and France on the adverse side for Poverty Rate.
Topic: Poverty & Financial Hardship
Primary indicator: Poverty Rate
Year: 2025
Difference: strong
Quality of Life in Europe: more favorable reading for Belgium
Belgium has the more favorable reading on Material and Social Deprivation compared with France. Against the European benchmark, Belgium is on the favorable side and France on the adverse side for Material and Social Deprivation.
Topic: Quality of Life in Europe
Primary indicator: Material and Social Deprivation
Year: 2025
Difference: significant