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

Health

be 36.1% less likely to be obese

In Greenland, 28.1% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sao Tome and Principe, that number is 17.9% of people as of 2024.

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Economy

be 3.4 times more likely to live below the poverty line

In Greenland, 16.2% live below the poverty line as of 2015. In Sao Tome and Principe, however, that number is 55.5% as of 2017.

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make 93.0% less money

Greenland has a GDP per capita of $58,499 as of 2023, while in Sao Tome and Principe, the GDP per capita is $4,084 as of 2025.

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Life

have 2.3 times more children

In Greenland, there are approximately 12.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sao Tome and Principe, there are 28.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 18.7% less likely to have access to electricity

In Greenland, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Sao Tome and Principe, that number is 81% of people on average (82% in urban areas, and 70% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 14.9% less likely to have internet access

In Greenland, approximately 69.5% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Sao Tome and Principe, about 59.1% do as of 2024.

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be 22.0% less likely to have access to drinking water

In Greenland, approximately 100% of people have access to drinking water (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Sao Tome and Principe, that number is 78% of people on average (79% in urban areas, and 73% in rural areas) as of 2024.

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Geography

see 99.5% less coastline

Greenland has a total of 44,087 km of coastline. In Sao Tome and Principe, that number is 209 km.

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Infrastructure

find 90.7% less home broadband

Greenland has 32.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Sao Tome and Principe has 3.0 as of 2024.

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Environment

emit 94.0% less CO2

Greenland emits 10.4 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sao Tome and Principe emits 0.6 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2017–2025), The World Factbook (2015–2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this

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 Greenland? See an in-depth size comparison.

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