Quality of life comparison
If you lived in South Africa instead of Guatemala, you would:
Health
be 95.5 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Guatemala, 0.2% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2020. In South Africa, that number is 19.1% of people as of 2020.
live 7.6 years less
In Guatemala, the average life expectancy is 73 years (71 years for men, 75 years for women) as of 2022. In South Africa, that number is 65 years (64 years for men, 67 years for women) as of 2022.
be 33.5% more likely to be obese
In Guatemala, 21.2% of adults are obese as of 2016. In South Africa, that number is 28.3% of people as of 2016.
Economy
make 36.9% more money
Guatemala has a GDP per capita of $8,400 as of 2020, while in South Africa, the GDP per capita is $11,500 as of 2020.
be 72.0% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Guatemala, 59.3% live below the poverty line as of 2014. In South Africa, however, that number is 16.6% as of 2016.
be 12.4 times more likely to be unemployed
In Guatemala, 2.3% of adults are unemployed as of 2017. In South Africa, that number is 28.5% as of 2019.
pay a 6.4 times higher top tax rate
Guatemala has a top tax rate of 7.0% as of 2016. In South Africa, the top tax rate is 45.0% as of 2017.
Life
be 17.6% more likely to be literate
In Guatemala, the literacy rate is 80.8% as of 2018. In South Africa, it is 95.0% as of 2019.
be 25.3% more likely to die during childbirth
In Guatemala, approximately 95.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In South Africa, 119.0 women do as of 2017.
have 16.9% fewer children
In Guatemala, there are approximately 22.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022. In South Africa, there are 18.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022.
Basic Needs
be 40.0% more likely to have internet access
In Guatemala, approximately 50.0% of the population has internet access as of 2020. In South Africa, about 70.0% do as of 2020.
Expenditures
spend 2.1 times more on education
Guatemala spends 3.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. South Africa spends 6.8% of total GDP on education as of 2020.
spend 46.8% more on healthcare
Guatemala spends 6.2% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2019. In South Africa, that number is 9.1% of GDP as of 2019.
Geography
see 7.0 times more coastline
Guatemala has a total of 400 km of coastline. In South Africa, that number is 2,798 km.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Superintendence of the Tax Administration, South African Revenue Service.
South Africa: At a glance
How big is South Africa compared to Guatemala? See an in-depth size comparison.