Around 450 million people live in the 27 EU countries – significantly more than in the USA, which has a population of around 348 million. However, there are considerable differences in living conditions when it comes to key social indicators. Life expectancy is higher in the EU, infant mortality is lower, as are murder rates and the number of drug-related deaths. Conversely, workers‘ rights are much better protected in the EU, for example, with regard to entitlement to paid leave.
Life expectancy in the EU is 81.5 years (Eurostat, 2023). Although there are significant differences between member states – for example, people in Spain live to around 84 years of age, while in Romania the average is 76 years – people in Europe clearly live longer than in the USA. There, life expectancy is 78.4 years (CDC, 2023).
The United States also performs worse in terms of infant mortality. In 2023, 12,280 children died before their first birthday in the EU, which corresponds to 3.3 per 1,000 births. In the USA, on the other hand, there were 5.6 deaths per 1,000 births in 2023.
USA vs. Europe: Higher murder rate in the USA
The differences are also clear when it comes to violent crime. In 2023, 3,930 intentional homicides were recorded in the EU – a decrease of 15.2 per cent compared to 2013. According to the Department of Justice, there were 19,800 murders in the US in the same year. Converted to 100,000 inhabitants, this corresponds to a rate of around 0.9 in the EU and 5.9 in the US. The murder rate in the United States is thus more than six times higher.
More drug deaths, more prisoners, more executions
Far more people die from drugs in the US than in Europe. In 2023, 105,007 people died from an overdose in the US, which corresponds to a rate of around 31 people per 100,000 inhabitants. In the EU, the number of drug-related deaths for 2023 is estimated at 7,400. Based on 100,000 people aged 15 to 64, this corresponds to two to three deaths (EUDA, European Union Drugs Agency). Even with a 30 per cent higher estimate, the EU rate of around four deaths would still be significantly lower than the US figure.
There is also a large difference in terms of imprisonment (including pre-trial detention). In the EU, around half a million people are serving prison sentences (2023). This corresponds to 111 prisoners per 100,000 inhabitants. At the same time, more than three times as many people were imprisoned in the US (around 1.8 million) – despite having a smaller population. According to the World Prison Brief, there are 542 people per 100,000 inhabitants in prison in the US.
Added to this is the death penalty: according to Amnesty International, 25 people were executed in the United States in 2024 – the second highest number since 2015. Only six countries worldwide carried out more executions.
More holidays and more maternity leave in the EU
When it comes to workers‘ rights, these are much better protected in Europe. The EU stipulates that all employees are entitled to at least four weeks of paid holiday per year. Some member states go even further. For example, people in Austria, France, Sweden and Finland have at least five weeks off per year and continue to receive their full salary.
If an employee has a child, she is entitled to at least 14 weeks of maternity leave and cannot be dismissed during this period. Here, too, some countries have even more generous regulations. The amount of pay during this period varies from country to country. In 13 countries, including Austria, mothers continue to receive their full salary, while in other countries they receive a fixed amount or 70 to 90 per cent of their previous salary.
In the USA, on the other hand, there is no federal legal entitlement to paid leave or maternity protection. The US Department of Labour writes on its website:
While many employees are entitled to unpaid leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), there is currently no federal law that provides or guarantees access to paid family and medical leave for private sector employees. However, some states have their own programmes and provisions for paid leave.
The same applies to paid sick leave: ‘There is currently no federal law that guarantees the right to paid sick leave, although many states and localities have enacted such laws.’
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