Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of China, you would:
Health
be 11.8% less likely to be obese
In China, 9.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.2% of people as of 2024.
be 31.4% less likely to die by suicide
China has a suicide rate of 8.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 16.1 years less
In China, the average life expectancy is 78 years (75 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 62 years (60 years for men, 64 years for women) as of 2024.
see 89.3% less spent on your healthcare
China spends $1,487 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sierra Leone spends $159 as of 2023.
have 95.7% fewer doctors per person
China has 31.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Sierra Leone has 1.3 as of 2022.
have 49.4% less access to essential health services
China scores 81 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sierra Leone scores 41 as of 2021.
Economy
be 31.8% less likely to be unemployed
In China, 4.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sierra Leone, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.
make 93.9% less money
China has a GDP per capita of $13,862 as of 2025, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.
Life
have 4.4 times more children
In China, there are approximately 6.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, there are 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 22.1 times more likely to die during childbirth
In China, approximately 16.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, 354.0 women do as of 2023.
be 49.8% less likely to be literate
In China, the literacy rate is 96.7% as of 2020. In Sierra Leone, it is 48.6% as of 2022.
be 13.3 times more likely to die during infancy
In China, approximately 4.1 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, on the other hand, 54.6 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 64.5% less likely to have access to electricity
In China, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 36% of people on average (56% in urban areas, and 19% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 72.6% less likely to have internet access
In China, approximately 91.6% of the population has internet access as of 2025. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.
be 29.2% less likely to have access to drinking water
In China, approximately 96% of people have access to drinking water (97% in urban areas, and 94% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 68% of people on average (82% in urban areas, and 57% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 32.8% less on education
China spends 3.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 20.5% less on healthcare
China spends 5.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 4.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 97.2% less coastline
China has a total of 14,500 km of coastline. In Sierra Leone, that number is 402 km.
Safety
be 20.7% less likely to die in a road accident
In China, road accidents kill 17.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, they kill 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 4.4 times more likely to be murdered
China has a homicide rate of 0.5 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In Sierra Leone, that number is 2.2 per 100,000 as of 2020.
Infrastructure
live with 98.8% less strain on fresh water
China withdraws 42% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sierra Leone withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 98.2% less CO2
China emits 9.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 51.6% more likely to die from air pollution
In China, air pollution causes 64.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, it causes 97.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2022), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: China vs. Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: At a glance
How big is Sierra Leone compared to China? See an in-depth size comparison.