Quality of life comparison
If you lived in South Africa instead of Greece, you would:
Health
be 57.3 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Greece, 0.3% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In South Africa, that number is 17.2% of people as of 2024.
live 15.5 years less
In Greece, the average life expectancy is 82 years (79 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In South Africa, that number is 66 years (63 years for men, 70 years for women) as of 2024.
be 15.9% more likely to be obese
In Greece, 27.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In South Africa, that number is 31.8% of people as of 2024.
see 60.8% less spent on your healthcare
Greece spends $3,454 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). South Africa spends $1,354 as of 2023.
have 87.9% fewer doctors per person
Greece has 65.8 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. South Africa has 7.9 as of 2022.
be 4.8 times more likely to die by suicide
Greece has a suicide rate of 4.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In South Africa, it is 22.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 3.8 times more likely to be unemployed
In Greece, 8.5% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In South Africa, that number is 32.4% as of 2025.
be 2.0 times more likely to live below the poverty line
In Greece, 18.8% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In South Africa, however, that number is 37.9% as of 2022.
make 75.5% less money
Greece has a GDP per capita of $26,948 as of 2025, while in South Africa, the GDP per capita is $6,598 as of 2025.
Life
have 2.8 times more children
In Greece, there are approximately 6.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In South Africa, there are 18.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 23.6 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Greece, approximately 5.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In South Africa, 118.0 women do as of 2023.
be 7.6 times more likely to die during infancy
In Greece, approximately 3.2 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In South Africa, on the other hand, 24.2 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 12.3% less likely to have access to electricity
In Greece, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In South Africa, that number is 88% of people on average (91% in urban areas, and 94% in rural areas) as of 2023.
Expenditures
spend 78.1% more on education
Greece spends 3.4% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. South Africa spends 6.0% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
Geography
see 79.5% less coastline
Greece has a total of 13,676 km of coastline. In South Africa, that number is 2,798 km.
Safety
be 52.0 times more likely to be murdered
Greece has a homicide rate of 0.8 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In South Africa, that number is 43.7 per 100,000 as of 2022.
be 3.4 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Greece, road accidents kill 7.3 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In South Africa, they kill 24.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 88.0% less home broadband
Greece has 44.7 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. South Africa has 5.3 as of 2024.
live with 3.3 times more strain on fresh water
Greece withdraws 20% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. South Africa withdraws 68% as of 2022.
use 30.7% less electricity
Greece uses 4,686 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. South Africa uses 3,247 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 2.0 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Greece, air pollution causes 23.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In South Africa, it causes 47.0 as of 2019.
emit 36.2% more CO2
Greece emits 5.0 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. South Africa emits 6.9 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Greece vs. South Africa
South Africa: At a glance
How big is South Africa compared to Greece? See an in-depth size comparison.