Quality of life comparison
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 11.4 times more money
Ghana has a GDP per capita of $5,300 as of 2020, while in United States, the GDP per capita is $60,200 as of 2020.
be 67.3% less likely to be unemployed
In Ghana, 11.9% of adults are unemployed as of 2015. In United States, that number is 3.9% as of 2018.
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 93.8% less likely to die during childbirth
In Ghana, approximately 308.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In United States, 19.0 women do as of 2017.
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 57.0% fewer children
In Ghana, there are approximately 28.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022. In United States, there are 12.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022.
Basic Needs
be 17.6% more likely to have access to electricity
In Ghana, approximately 85% of the population has electricity access as of 2019. In United States, 100% of the population do as of 2020.
be 56.9% more likely to have internet access
In Ghana, approximately 58.0% of the population has internet access as of 2020. In United States, about 91.0% do as of 2020.
Expenditures
spend 25.0% more on education
Ghana spends 4.0% of its total GDP on education as of 2018. United States spends 5.0% of total GDP on education as of 2014.
spend 4.9 times more on healthcare
Ghana spends 3.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2019. In United States, that number is 16.8% of GDP as of 2019.
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
How big is United States compared to Ghana? See an in-depth size comparison.