Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in United States instead of Ghana, you would:

Health

live 11.2 years longer

In Ghana, the average life expectancy is 69 years (68 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2022. In United States, that number is 81 years (78 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2022.

be 3.3 times more likely to be obese

In Ghana, 10.9% of adults are obese as of 2016. In United States, that number is 36.2% of people as of 2016.

Economy

make 11.7 times more money

Ghana has a GDP per capita of $5,500 as of 2022, while in United States, the GDP per capita is $64,600 as of 2022.

be 35.5% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Ghana, 23.4% live below the poverty line as of 2016. In United States, however, that number is 15.1% as of 2010.

pay a 58.4% higher top tax rate

Ghana has a top tax rate of 25.0% as of 2016. In United States, the top tax rate is 39.6% as of 2016.

Life

be 92.0% less likely to die during childbirth

In Ghana, approximately 263.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In United States, 21.0 women do as of 2020.

be 84.1% less likely to die during infancy

In Ghana, approximately 32.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In United States, on the other hand, 5.2 children do as of 2022.

have 55.8% fewer children

In Ghana, there are approximately 27.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In United States, there are 12.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Basic Needs

be 15.9% more likely to have access to electricity

In Ghana, approximately 86% of the population has electricity access as of 2021. In United States, 100% of the population do as of 2021.

be 35.3% more likely to have internet access

In Ghana, approximately 68.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In United States, about 92.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 56.4% more on education

Ghana spends 3.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2018. United States spends 6.1% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 4.7 times more on healthcare

Ghana spends 4.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In United States, that number is 18.8% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 37.0 times more coastline

Ghana has a total of 539 km of coastline. In United States, that number is 19,924 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: Internal Revenue Service, The World Factbook, Ghana Revenue Authority.

United States: At a glance

United States (sometimes abbreviated US or USA) is a sovereign country in North America, with a total land area of approximately 9,147,593 sq km. Britain's American colonies broke with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the new nation of the United States of America following the Treaty of Paris in 1783. During the 19th and 20th centuries, 37 new states were added to the original 13 as the nation expanded across the North American continent and acquired a number of overseas possessions. The two most traumatic experiences in the nation's history were the Civil War (1861-65), in which a northern Union of states defeated a secessionist Confederacy of 11 southern slave states, and the Great Depression of the 1930s, an economic downturn during which about a quarter of the labor force lost its jobs. Buoyed by victories in World Wars I and II and the end of the Cold War in 1991, the US remains the world's most powerful nation state. Since the end of World War II, the economy has achieved relatively steady growth, low unemployment and inflation, and rapid advances in technology.
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