If you lived in Iceland instead of Guinea-Bissau, you would:

Health

be 95.5% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Guinea-Bissau, 2.2% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Iceland, that number is 0.1% of people as of 2024.

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live 18.6 years longer

In Guinea-Bissau, the average life expectancy is 64 years (62 years for men, 67 years for women) as of 2024. In Iceland, that number is 83 years (81 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 28.0 times more spent on your healthcare

Guinea-Bissau spends $247 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Iceland spends $6,927 as of 2024.

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have 17.4 times more doctors per person

Guinea-Bissau has 2.5 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Iceland has 43.7 as of 2023.

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have 2.4 times more access to essential health services

Guinea-Bissau scores 37 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Iceland scores 89 as of 2021.

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be 74.7% more likely to be obese

In Guinea-Bissau, 12.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Iceland, that number is 22.2% of people as of 2024.

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be 55.3% more likely to die by suicide

Guinea-Bissau has a suicide rate of 7.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Iceland, it is 11.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

make 87.5 times more money

Guinea-Bissau has a GDP per capita of $1,124 as of 2025, while in Iceland, the GDP per capita is $98,323 as of 2025.

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be 35.6% more likely to be unemployed

In Guinea-Bissau, 2.7% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Iceland, that number is 3.6% as of 2025.

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Life

be 99.4% less likely to die during childbirth

In Guinea-Bissau, approximately 505.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Iceland, 3.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 95.0% less likely to die during infancy

In Guinea-Bissau, approximately 42.1 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Iceland, on the other hand, 2.1 children do as of 2024.

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have 62.1% fewer children

In Guinea-Bissau, there are approximately 29.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Iceland, there are 11.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 2.5 times more likely to have access to electricity

In Guinea-Bissau, approximately 40% of people have electricity access (64% in urban areas, and 21% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Iceland, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 3.3 times more likely to have internet access

In Guinea-Bissau, approximately 29.8% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Iceland, about 98.2% do as of 2024.

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be 61.8% more likely to have access to drinking water

In Guinea-Bissau, approximately 62% of people have access to drinking water (73% in urban areas, and 53% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Iceland, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 2.7 times more on education

Guinea-Bissau spends 2.7% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Iceland spends 7.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.

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Geography

see 14.2 times more coastline

Guinea-Bissau has a total of 350 km of coastline. In Iceland, that number is 4,970 km.

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Safety

be 92.1% less likely to die in a road accident

In Guinea-Bissau, road accidents kill 30.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Iceland, they kill 2.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 96.2 times more home broadband

Guinea-Bissau has 0.4 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Iceland has 37.5 as of 2024.

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live with 74.0% less strain on fresh water

Guinea-Bissau withdraws 2% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Iceland withdraws 0% as of 2022.

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Environment

be 91.0% less likely to die from air pollution

In Guinea-Bissau, air pollution causes 89.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Iceland, it causes 8.0 as of 2019.

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emit 53.2 times more CO2

Guinea-Bissau emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Iceland emits 8.5 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2020), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this

Iceland: At a glance

Iceland is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 100,250 sq km. Settled by Norwegian and Celtic (Scottish and Irish) immigrants during the late 9th and 10th centuries A.D., Iceland boasts the world's oldest functioning legislative assembly, the Althing, established in 930. Independent for over 300 years, Iceland was subsequently ruled by Norway and Denmark. Fallout from the Askja volcano of 1875 devastated the Icelandic economy and caused widespread famine. Over the next quarter century, 20% of the island's population emigrated, mostly to Canada and the US. Denmark granted limited home rule in 1874 and complete independence in 1944. The second half of the 20th century saw substantial economic growth driven primarily by the fishing industry. The economy diversified greatly after the country joined the European Economic Area in 1994, but Iceland was especially hard hit by the global financial crisis in the years following 2008. Literacy, longevity, and social cohesion are first rate by world standards.
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