# Lithuania and Latvia compared Lithuania and Latvia side by side: 43 shared sourced indicators across 9 domains, and the 2 events their chronicles record of each other. Canonical: https://terralore.co/compare/ltu-vs-lva 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 - Lithuania: 6 July 1253 — Mindaugas is crowned King of Lithuania - Latvia: 18 November 1918 — Latvia declares independence ## Economy | Metric | Lithuania | Observed | Latvia | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | GDP | $85 B | 2024 | $44 B | 2024 | | GDP per capita | $29,384 | 2024 | $23,409 | 2024 | | GDP growth | 2.8% | 2024 | -0.0% | 2024 | | Inflation | 0.7% | 2024 | 1.3% | 2024 | | Trade openness | 143.0% | 2024 | 132.3% | 2024 | ## Society | Metric | Lithuania | Observed | Latvia | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Population | 2.9 m | 2024 | 1.9 m | 2024 | | Life expectancy | 77.2 yrs | 2024 | 76.4 yrs | 2024 | | Urban population | 68.8% | 2024 | 68.5% | 2024 | | Fertility rate | 1.1 | 2024 | 1.2 | 2024 | ## Governance | Metric | Lithuania | Observed | Latvia | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Voice & accountability | 78.2 | 2024 | 76.6 | 2024 | | Political stability | 81.9 | 2024 | 76.5 | 2024 | | Government effectiveness | 74.7 | 2024 | 65.8 | 2024 | | Regulatory quality | 75.2 | 2024 | 72.2 | 2024 | | Rule of law | 80.6 | 2024 | 75.7 | 2024 | | Control of corruption | 68.0 | 2024 | 64.6 | 2024 | ## Health | Metric | Lithuania | Observed | Latvia | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Health spending | 7.6% | 2024 | 7.3% | 2023 | | Physicians | 4.47 | 2022 | 3.40 | 2022 | | Under-5 mortality | 3.4 | 2024 | 2.5 | 2024 | | Measles immunisation | 86.0% | 2024 | 98.0% | 2024 | | Safe drinking water | 96.7% | 2024 | 97.0% | 2024 | ## Education | Metric | Lithuania | Observed | Latvia | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Adult literacy | 99.8% | 2011 | 99.9% | 2011 | | Education spending | 4.3% | 2022 | 4.3% | 2022 | | Primary enrolment | 100.5% | 2024 | 97.6% | 2024 | | Secondary enrolment | 104.9% | 2024 | 101.3% | 2024 | | Tertiary enrolment | 75.6% | 2024 | 82.9% | 2024 | ## Technology | Metric | Lithuania | Observed | Latvia | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | R&D spending | 1.0% | 2023 | 0.8% | 2023 | | Researchers (per million) | 3,704 | 2023 | 2,191 | 2023 | | Internet users | 89.2% | 2024 | 92.7% | 2024 | | Mobile subscriptions | 139 | 2024 | 121 | 2024 | | High-tech exports | 17.3% | 2024 | 17.5% | 2024 | ## Geography | Metric | Lithuania | Observed | Latvia | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Land area | 62,600 km² | 2023 | 62,230 km² | 2023 | | Forest area | 35.2% | 2023 | 55.0% | 2023 | | Agricultural land | 45.9% | 2023 | 31.7% | 2023 | | CO₂ per capita (t) | 4.5 | 2024 | 3.6 | 2024 | | Renewable energy | 33.2% | 2021 | 44.0% | 2021 | ## Resources | Metric | Lithuania | Observed | Latvia | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Resource rents | 0.3% | 2021 | 1.2% | 2021 | | Oil rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.1% | 2021 | | Mineral rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.0% | 2021 | | Forest rents | 0.3% | 2021 | 1.1% | 2021 | | Electricity access | 100.0% | 2023 | 100.0% | 2023 | ## Military | Metric | Lithuania | Observed | Latvia | Observed | |---|---|---|---|---| | Military burden | 3.1% | 2024 | 3.3% | 2024 | | Defense spending | $2.6 B | 2024 | $1.4 B | 2024 | | Armed forces | 37,000 | 2020 | 9,000 | 2020 | Each metric is also ranked across all nations: https://terralore.co/rankings (markdown twins at /rankings/.md). Full dossiers: https://terralore.co/country/LTU.md and https://terralore.co/country/LVA.md. ## Entangled histories (2 events) Events in which either nation's sourced chronicle names the other — including under earlier names of the same state. Each is the record exactly as its own chronicle carries it, with that chronicle's sources. - 1621: **Swedish conquest of Riga** — Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden captured Riga and most of Livonia from Poland-Lithuania, opening the period of Swedish rule remembered by Latvians as the 'good Swedish times'. (from the Latvia chronicle; sources: Latvia: History; History of the Port of Riga) - 1795: **Courland annexed by Russia** — In the third partition of Poland-Lithuania the Duchy of Courland was incorporated into the Russian Empire, completing Russian rule over all the Latvian lands. (from the Latvia chronicle; sources: Latvia: History; History of Latvia) ## 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/LTU/chronicle.md and https://terralore.co/country/LVA/chronicle.md. Citation template: Terralore, "Lithuania and Latvia compared", terralore.co/compare/ltu-vs-lva, retrieved .