# Switzerland and Germany compared

Switzerland and Germany side by side: 42 shared sourced indicators across 9 domains, their chronicles record no events of each other.

Canonical: https://terralore.co/compare/che-vs-deu
Updated: 2026-08-10 (latest of the two dossiers' refreshes and the two chronicles' verification dates)

Two sourced records set beside each other — nothing on this page was written for the pair. Every figure is the same observation, with the same source, as on the two national dossiers; every event is the same record, with the same sources, as on its own chronicle. Figures are compared, never graded. A "—" is an absence in the source data, never a zero; each value shows its own observation year — vintages differ by indicator and nation.

## Formation

- Switzerland: 1291 — The Federal Charter binds Uri, Schwyz and Unterwalden
- Germany: 18 January 1871 — The German Empire is proclaimed

## Economy

| Metric | Switzerland | Observed | Germany | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GDP | $937 B | 2024 | $4.69 T | 2024 |
| GDP per capita | $103,998 | 2024 | $56,104 | 2024 |
| GDP growth | 1.3% | 2024 | -0.5% | 2024 |
| Inflation | 1.1% | 2024 | 2.3% | 2024 |
| Trade openness | 134.1% | 2024 | 79.1% | 2024 |

## Society

| Metric | Switzerland | Observed | Germany | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 9.0 m | 2024 | 84 m | 2024 |
| Life expectancy | 84.4 yrs | 2024 | 80.8 yrs | 2024 |
| Urban population | 85.5% | 2024 | 82.0% | 2024 |
| Fertility rate | 1.3 | 2024 | 1.4 | 2024 |

## Governance

| Metric | Switzerland | Observed | Germany | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Voice & accountability | 85.6 | 2024 | 84.8 | 2024 |
| Political stability | 82.6 | 2024 | 68.0 | 2024 |
| Government effectiveness | 87.1 | 2024 | 81.4 | 2024 |
| Regulatory quality | 82.8 | 2024 | 78.5 | 2024 |
| Rule of law | 87.3 | 2024 | 84.9 | 2024 |
| Control of corruption | 88.5 | 2024 | 83.8 | 2024 |

## Health

| Metric | Switzerland | Observed | Germany | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health spending | 11.7% | 2023 | 12.3% | 2024 |
| Physicians | 4.48 | 2022 | 4.53 | 2022 |
| Under-5 mortality | 3.9 | 2024 | 3.7 | 2024 |
| Measles immunisation | 96.0% | 2024 | 96.0% | 2024 |
| Safe drinking water | 96.7% | 2024 | 99.9% | 2024 |

## Education

| Metric | Switzerland | Observed | Germany | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Education spending | 4.9% | 2022 | 5.2% | 2022 |
| Primary enrolment | 101.2% | 2024 | 102.6% | 2024 |
| Secondary enrolment | 101.4% | 2024 | 100.2% | 2024 |
| Tertiary enrolment | 73.5% | 2024 | 76.7% | 2024 |

## Technology

| Metric | Switzerland | Observed | Germany | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R&D spending | 3.2% | 2023 | 3.2% | 2023 |
| Researchers (per million) | 6,108 | 2023 | 5,926 | 2023 |
| Internet users | 97.3% | 2025 | 93.5% | 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptions | 129 | 2024 | 129 | 2024 |
| High-tech exports | 29.6% | 2024 | 18.0% | 2024 |

## Geography

| Metric | Switzerland | Observed | Germany | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Land area | 39,510 km² | 2023 | 349,430 km² | 2023 |
| Forest area | 32.4% | 2023 | 32.7% | 2023 |
| Agricultural land | 37.8% | 2023 | 47.5% | 2023 |
| CO₂ per capita (t) | 3.7 | 2024 | 6.9 | 2024 |
| Renewable energy | 27.7% | 2021 | 17.6% | 2021 |

## Resources

| Metric | Switzerland | Observed | Germany | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Resource rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.1% | 2021 |
| Oil rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.0% | 2021 |
| Mineral rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.0% | 2021 |
| Forest rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.0% | 2021 |
| Electricity access | 100.0% | 2023 | 100.0% | 2023 |

## Military

| Metric | Switzerland | Observed | Germany | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Military burden | 0.7% | 2024 | 1.9% | 2024 |
| Defense spending | $6.7 B | 2024 | $88 B | 2024 |
| Armed forces | 20,000 | 2020 | 183,000 | 2020 |

Each metric is also ranked across all nations: https://terralore.co/rankings (markdown twins at /rankings/<metric>.md). Full dossiers: https://terralore.co/country/CHE.md and https://terralore.co/country/DEU.md.

## Entangled histories (0 events)

Neither nation's sourced chronicle names the other — across both archives, no recorded event crosses between them. That is a fact about the two records as they stand, not a gap filled here.

## Sources

- World Development Indicators — World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://data.worldbank.org
- Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) — Worldwide Governance Indicators / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators
- Global Health Observatory (WHO, via World Bank WDI) — WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.who.int/data/gho
- Child mortality & immunisation estimates (UN IGME and WHO/UNICEF, via World Bank WDI) — UNICEF and WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://childmortality.org
- R&D statistics (UNESCO UIS, via World Bank WDI) — UNESCO Institute for Statistics / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://uis.unesco.org
- ICT indicators (ITU, via World Bank WDI) — ITU / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics
- Military Expenditure Database (via World Development Indicators) — SIPRI / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://www.sipri.org/databases/milex

Chronicle references are cited inline above and resolve in full at https://terralore.co/country/CHE/chronicle.md and https://terralore.co/country/DEU/chronicle.md.

Citation template: Terralore, "Switzerland and Germany compared", terralore.co/compare/che-vs-deu, retrieved <YYYY-MM-DD>.
