Japan has the sixth-highest number of hospital beds per 1,000 people in the world
The World Bank’s World Development Indicators (WDI) record the number of hospital beds per 1,000 people for 201 countries and regions. The global figure is 3.29 beds. Japan has 12.59 beds, ranking 6th among countries and regions with the highest numbers. That is 3.8 times the global figure.
The top three are Monaco (21.99 beds), the U.S. Virgin Islands (18.68 beds), and Greenland (14.35 beds). All are small countries or regions, where a single facility can significantly affect the figure per capita. Japan is the only country with a population of around 100 million at this level.
At the bottom are Chad (0.15 beds), Burkina Faso (0.20 beds), and Mali (0.25 beds). The gap between the top and bottom is more than 80-fold.
Yet Japan ranks 73rd out of 208 countries and regions in number of doctors
Looking at the number of doctors per 1,000 people, Japan has 2.65 doctors, ranking 73rd out of 208 countries and regions. Although this exceeds the global figure of 1.86 doctors, Japan ranks only slightly above the midpoint.
The top three are Cuba (9.54 doctors), Monaco (8.61 doctors), and Seychelles (6.60 doctors). At the bottom are Niger (0.04 doctors), South Sudan (0.04 doctors), and Somalia (0.05 doctors); in some countries, a single doctor is calculated to be responsible for more than 20,000 people.
Japan ranks 6th in hospital beds but 73rd in doctors. Measured by the number of doctors per hospital bed, Japan has 0.21 doctors. Applying the same calculation to the global figures gives 0.57 doctors. This reveals a structure in which there are plenty of “boxes” but relatively few “people.”
Healthcare spending ranks 20th as a share of GDP and 24th per capita
Healthcare spending amounts to 10.74% of GDP (20th out of 193 countries and regions) and 3,638 dollars per capita (24th). Japan’s share is almost the same as the global figure of 10.02%, while its per-capita spending is 2.8 times the global figure of 1,317 dollars.
The highest figures as a share of GDP are Tuvalu (27.09%), Nauru (18.21%), and the United States (16.69%). The highest per-capita figures are in the United States (13,473 dollars), Switzerland (11,784 dollars), and Liechtenstein (11,495 dollars), ranging from 3.2 to 3.7 times Japan’s figure.
At the bottom by share of GDP are Laos (1.33%), Bangladesh (2.17%), and Brunei (2.23%). Per capita, the lowest are Madagascar (17.44 dollars), Sudan (21.08 dollars), and Somalia (22.37 dollars), all less than one two-hundredth of Japan’s figure.
Japan ranks 4th out of 196 countries and regions in infant mortality
Looking at outcomes changes the picture. Japan’s infant mortality rate (per 1,000 live births) is 1.8, ranking 4th out of 196 countries and regions when ordered from lowest to highest. This is one-fifteenth of the global figure of 27.7.
The lowest figures are in San Marino (1.2), Estonia (1.5), and Belarus (1.8). The highest are in South Sudan (71.9), Nigeria (69.8), and Niger (65.6); in some countries, one out of every 14 children born does not reach their first birthday.
Even compared with the United States, where healthcare spending is 3.7 times Japan’s, Japan has a lower figure on this indicator. The amount of money spent and the resulting outcomes do not correspond directly in the rankings.
What becomes visible when the five indicators are placed side by side
| Indicator | Japan’s figure | Rank (number of countries/regions) | Global figure |
| Infant mortality rate | 1.8 per 1,000 | 4th (196, lowest first) | 27.7 |
| Hospital beds | 12.59 per 1,000 | 6th (201) | 3.29 beds |
| Healthcare spending (share of GDP) | 10.74% | 20th (193) | 10.02% |
| Healthcare spending per capita | 3,638 dollars | 24th (193) | 1,317 dollars |
| Doctors | 2.65 per 1,000 | 73rd (208) | 1.86 doctors |
For outcomes (infant mortality) and facilities (hospital beds), Japan is among the world’s top performers; it ranks highly in spending and sits in the middle tier for human resources. Its rankings range from 4th to 73rd.
International comparisons of healthcare are often discussed in terms of spending levels or the number of facilities. Looking at the ratio of facilities to human resources shows that even when countries are described with the same phrase—“well-developed healthcare”—the substance can differ considerably from one country to another.
Sources
- Hospital beds (per 1,000 people) (World Bank World Development Indicators SH.MED.BEDS.ZS)
- Physicians (per 1,000 people) (same source, SH.MED.PHYS.ZS)
- Current health expenditure (% of GDP) (same source, SH.XPD.CHEX.GD.ZS)
- Current health expenditure per capita (current US$) (same source, SH.XPD.CHEX.PC.CD)
- Mortality rate, infant (per 1,000 live births) (same source, SP.DYN.IMRT.IN)
Figures are based on the latest year available for each indicator: healthcare spending and healthcare spending per capita, 2024; infant mortality rate, 2024; number of doctors, 2023; number of hospital beds, 2023.