Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Eritrea instead of Iceland, you would:
Health
be 80.5% less likely to be obese
In Iceland, 22.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Eritrea, that number is 4.3% of people as of 2024.
live 13.9 years less
In Iceland, the average life expectancy is 83 years (81 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Eritrea, that number is 69 years (67 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024.
see 98.8% less spent on your healthcare
Iceland spends $6,927 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Eritrea spends $87 as of 2023.
have 98.0% fewer doctors per person
Iceland has 43.7 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Eritrea has 0.9 as of 2022.
have 49.4% less access to essential health services
Iceland scores 89 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Eritrea scores 45 as of 2021.
be 11.1% more likely to die by suicide
Iceland has a suicide rate of 11.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Eritrea, it is 13.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 65.2% more likely to be unemployed
In Iceland, 3.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Eritrea, that number is 6.0% as of 2025.
Life
have 2.6 times more children
In Iceland, there are approximately 11.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Eritrea, there are 28.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 97.0 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Iceland, approximately 3.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Eritrea, 291.0 women do as of 2023.
be 11.8 times more likely to die during infancy
In Iceland, approximately 2.1 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Eritrea, on the other hand, 24.7 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 45.6% less likely to have access to electricity
In Iceland, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Eritrea, that number is 54% of people on average (77% in urban areas, and 37% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 72.9% less likely to have internet access
In Iceland, approximately 98.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Eritrea, about 26.6% do as of 2022.
Expenditures
spend 59.0% less on healthcare
Iceland spends 9.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2024. In Eritrea, that number is 3.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 55.1% less coastline
Iceland has a total of 4,970 km of coastline. In Eritrea, that number is 2,234 km.
Safety
be 7.4 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Iceland, road accidents kill 2.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Eritrea, they kill 17.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 99.5% less home broadband
Iceland has 37.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Eritrea has 0.2 as of 2022.
live with 28.7 times more strain on fresh water
Iceland withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Eritrea withdraws 11% as of 2022.
use 99.7% less electricity
Iceland uses 48,998 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Eritrea uses 123 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
emit 97.4% less CO2
Iceland emits 8.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Eritrea emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 9.8 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Iceland, air pollution causes 8.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Eritrea, it causes 78.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2022), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Iceland vs. Eritrea
Eritrea: At a glance
How big is Eritrea compared to Iceland? See an in-depth size comparison.