Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Sao Tome and Principe instead of District of Columbia, you would:

Health

be 29.2% less likely to be obese

In District of Columbia, 25.3% of adults are obese as of 2022. In Sao Tome and Principe, that number is 17.9% of people as of 2024.

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Economy

be 42.7% more likely to be unemployed

In District of Columbia, 6.4% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sao Tome and Principe, that number is 9.1% as of 2025.

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make 98.0% less money

District of Columbia has a GDP per capita of $209,167 as of 2024, while in Sao Tome and Principe, the GDP per capita is $4,084 as of 2025.

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Basic Needs

be 34.5% less likely to have internet access

In District of Columbia, approximately 90.3% of the population has internet access as of 2023. In Sao Tome and Principe, about 59.1% do as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2024–2025), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES) (2022), World Health Organization (2024), Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024), US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) (2023). How we calculate this

Compare further: District of Columbia vs. Sao Tome and Principe

Cost of Living Comparison · 7 categories - 2026 data
Sao Tome and Principe is 65.0% cheaper than District of Columbia
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Size Comparison · See true size
District of Columbia is about 5 times smaller than Sao Tome and Principe.
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Moving from District of Columbia to Sao Tome and Principe · Cost, visas & climate
Compare cost of living, salary and climate.
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Sao Tome and Principe: At a glance

Sao Tome and Principe is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 964 sq km. Discovered and claimed by Portugal in the late 15th century, the islands' sugar-based economy gave way to coffee and cocoa in the 19th century - all grown with African plantation slave labor, a form of which lingered into the 20th century. While independence was achieved in 1975, democratic reforms were not instituted until the late 1980s. The country held its first free elections in 1991, but frequent internal wrangling between the various political parties precipitated repeated changes in leadership and two failed coup attempts in 1995 and 2003. In 2012, three opposition parties combined in a no confidence vote to bring down the majority government of former Prime Minister Patrice TROVOADA. The new government of Prime Minister Gabriel Arcanjo Ferreira DA COSTA is entirely composed of opposition party members with limited experience in governance. New oil discoveries in the Gulf of Guinea may attract increased attention to the small island nation.
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How big is Sao Tome and Principe compared to District of Columbia? See an in-depth size comparison.

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