Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Papua New Guinea instead of Benin, you would:
Health
live 5.3 years longer
In Benin, the average life expectancy is 61 years (60 years for men, 62 years for women) as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 66 years (64 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2024.
be 74.4% less likely to die by suicide
Benin has a suicide rate of 7.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Papua New Guinea, it is 1.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 2.1 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Benin, 0.7% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 1.5% of people as of 2024.
be 2.3 times more likely to be obese
In Benin, 12.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 28.0% of people as of 2024.
have 71.8% fewer doctors per person
Benin has 2.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Papua New Guinea has 0.6 as of 2023.
have 21.1% less access to essential health services
Benin scores 38 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Papua New Guinea scores 30 as of 2021.
Economy
make 82.1% more money
Benin has a GDP per capita of $1,658 as of 2025, while in Papua New Guinea, the GDP per capita is $3,020 as of 2025.
be 61.6% more likely to be unemployed
In Benin, 1.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.6% as of 2025.
Life
be 63.5% less likely to die during childbirth
In Benin, approximately 518.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, 189.0 women do as of 2023.
be 69.3% more likely to be literate
In Benin, the literacy rate is 51.4% as of 2022. In Papua New Guinea, it is 87.0% as of 2022.
be 30.8% less likely to die during infancy
In Benin, approximately 45.2 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, on the other hand, 31.3 children do as of 2024.
have 27.3% fewer children
In Benin, there are approximately 33.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, there are 24.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 64.0% less likely to have access to electricity
In Benin, approximately 57% of people have electricity access (70% in urban areas, and 44% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 20% of people on average (65% in urban areas, and 13% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 44.6% less likely to have internet access
In Benin, approximately 34.0% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, about 18.8% do as of 2024.
be 23.4% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Benin, approximately 70% of people have access to drinking water (76% in urban areas, and 63% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 53% of people on average (84% in urban areas, and 48% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 75.9% less on education
Benin spends 3.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Papua New Guinea spends 0.8% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 14.1% less on healthcare
Benin spends 3.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.9% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 42.6 times more coastline
Benin has a total of 121 km of coastline. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 5,152 km.
Safety
be 39.9% less likely to die in a road accident
In Benin, road accidents kill 24.8 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Papua New Guinea, they kill 14.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 86.7% less strain on fresh water
Benin withdraws 1% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Papua New Guinea withdraws 0% as of 2022.
find 17.9% less home broadband
Benin has 0.3 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Papua New Guinea has 0.2 as of 2024.
Environment
be 50.6% less likely to die from air pollution
In Benin, air pollution causes 77.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Papua New Guinea, it causes 38.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Benin vs. Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: At a glance
How big is Papua New Guinea compared to Benin? See an in-depth size comparison.