If you lived in Nicaragua instead of Eritrea, you would:

Health

live 6.2 years longer

In Eritrea, the average life expectancy is 69 years (67 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024. In Nicaragua, that number is 75 years (72 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2024.

View global rankings →

see 8.0 times more spent on your healthcare

Eritrea spends $87 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Nicaragua spends $689 as of 2023.

View global rankings →

have 55.6% more access to essential health services

Eritrea scores 45 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Nicaragua scores 70 as of 2021.

View global rankings →

be 68.0% less likely to die by suicide

Eritrea has a suicide rate of 13.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Nicaragua, it is 4.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.

View global rankings →

be 8.1 times more likely to be obese

In Eritrea, 4.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Nicaragua, that number is 34.9% of people as of 2024.

View global rankings →

Economy

be 15.7% less likely to be unemployed

In Eritrea, 6.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Nicaragua, that number is 5.0% as of 2025.

View global rankings →

Life

be 79.4% less likely to die during childbirth

In Eritrea, approximately 291.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Nicaragua, 60.0 women do as of 2023.

View global rankings →

be 61.9% less likely to die during infancy

In Eritrea, approximately 24.7 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.

View global rankings →

have 33.4% fewer children

In Eritrea, there are approximately 28.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Nicaragua, there are 19.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

View global rankings →

Basic Needs

be 62.3% more likely to have access to electricity

In Eritrea, approximately 54% of people have electricity access (77% in urban areas, and 37% 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.

View global rankings →

be 2.3 times more likely to have internet access

In Eritrea, approximately 26.6% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Nicaragua, about 61.4% do as of 2024.

View global rankings →

Expenditures

spend 2.3 times more on healthcare

Eritrea spends 3.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Nicaragua, that number is 8.3% of GDP as of 2023.

View global rankings →

Geography

see 59.3% less coastline

Eritrea has a total of 2,234 km of coastline. In Nicaragua, that number is 910 km.

View global rankings →

Safety

be 23.2% less likely to die in a road accident

In Eritrea, road accidents kill 17.7 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Nicaragua, they kill 13.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.

View global rankings →

Infrastructure

find 34.0 times more home broadband

Eritrea has 0.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Nicaragua has 5.8 as of 2024.

View global rankings →

live with 80.1% less strain on fresh water

Eritrea withdraws 11% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Nicaragua withdraws 2% as of 2022.

View global rankings →

use 5.2 times more electricity

Eritrea uses 123 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Nicaragua uses 641 kWh as of 2023.

View global rankings →

Environment

be 51.3% less likely to die from air pollution

In Eritrea, air pollution causes 78.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Nicaragua, it causes 38.0 as of 2019.

View global rankings →

emit 3.8 times more CO2

Eritrea emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Nicaragua emits 0.8 tonnes as of 2024.

View global rankings →


Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2022), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this

Nicaragua: At a glance

Nicaragua is a sovereign country in Central America/Caribbean, with a total land area of approximately 119,990 sq km. The Pacific coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades. Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in a short-lived civil war that brought the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador caused the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. After losing free and fair elections in 1990, 1996, and 2001, former Sandinista President Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra was elected president in 2006 and reelected in 2011. The 2008 municipal elections, 2010 regional elections, 2011 presidential elections, 2012 municipal elections, and 2013 regional elections were marred by widespread irregularities. Nicaragua's infrastructure and economy - hard hit by the earlier civil war and by Hurricane Mitch in 1998 - are slowly being rebuilt, but democratic institutions have been weakened under the ORTEGA administration.
Read more

How big is Nicaragua compared to Eritrea? See an in-depth size comparison.

Share this

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Nicaragua or Eritrea. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.