Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Nicaragua instead of Chile, you would:
Health
be 13.7% less likely to be obese
In Chile, 40.5% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Nicaragua, that number is 34.9% of people as of 2024.
be 44.9% less likely to die by suicide
Chile has a suicide rate of 7.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Nicaragua, it is 4.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 6.3 years less
In Chile, the average life expectancy is 81 years (79 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2024. In Nicaragua, that number is 75 years (72 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2024.
see 80.9% less spent on your healthcare
Chile spends $3,612 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Nicaragua spends $689 as of 2023.
have 14.6% less access to essential health services
Chile scores 82 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Nicaragua scores 70 as of 2021.
Economy
be 43.8% less likely to be unemployed
In Chile, 9.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Nicaragua, that number is 5.0% as of 2025.
make 82.4% less money
Chile has a GDP per capita of $17,995 as of 2025, while in Nicaragua, the GDP per capita is $3,173 as of 2025.
Life
have 2.2 times more children
In Chile, there are approximately 8.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Nicaragua, there are 19.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 6.0 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Chile, approximately 10.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Nicaragua, 60.0 women do as of 2023.
be 62.1% more likely to die during infancy
In Chile, approximately 5.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Nicaragua, on the other hand, 9.4 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 11.7% less likely to have access to electricity
In Chile, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Nicaragua, that number is 88% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 71% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 35.8% less likely to have internet access
In Chile, approximately 95.6% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Nicaragua, about 61.4% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 41.5% less on education
Chile spends 4.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Nicaragua spends 2.9% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 21.2% less on healthcare
Chile spends 10.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2024. In Nicaragua, that number is 8.3% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 85.9% less coastline
Chile has a total of 6,435 km of coastline. In Nicaragua, that number is 910 km.
Safety
be 78.7% more likely to be murdered
Chile has a homicide rate of 6.3 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Nicaragua, that number is 11.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 32.0% more likely to die in a road accident
In Chile, road accidents kill 10.3 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Nicaragua, they kill 13.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 75.3% less strain on fresh water
Chile withdraws 9% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Nicaragua withdraws 2% as of 2022.
find 75.6% less home broadband
Chile has 23.7 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Nicaragua has 5.8 as of 2024.
use 85.4% less electricity
Chile uses 4,373 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Nicaragua uses 641 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
emit 78.9% less CO2
Chile emits 3.9 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Nicaragua emits 0.8 tonnes as of 2024.
be 2.1 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Chile, air pollution causes 18.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Nicaragua, 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: Chile vs. Nicaragua
Nicaragua: At a glance
How big is Nicaragua compared to Chile? See an in-depth size comparison.