Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Afghanistan instead of Lesotho, you would:
Health
be 99.4% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Lesotho, 17.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Afghanistan, that number is 0.1% of people as of 2024.
live 8.5 years longer
In Lesotho, the average life expectancy is 58 years (55 years for men, 60 years for women) as of 2024. In Afghanistan, that number is 66 years (65 years for men, 68 years for women) as of 2024.
have 34.9% more doctors per person
Lesotho has 2.4 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Afghanistan has 3.2 as of 2023.
be 87.4% less likely to die by suicide
Lesotho has a suicide rate of 28.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Afghanistan, it is 3.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
see 14.5% less spent on your healthcare
Lesotho spends $386 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Afghanistan spends $330 as of 2023.
have 22.6% less access to essential health services
Lesotho scores 53 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Afghanistan scores 41 as of 2021.
Economy
be 18.2% less likely to be unemployed
In Lesotho, 16.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Afghanistan, that number is 13.3% as of 2025.
make 61.7% less money
Lesotho has a GDP per capita of $1,089 as of 2025, while in Afghanistan, the GDP per capita is $417 as of 2024.
Life
be 14.2% less likely to die during infancy
In Lesotho, approximately 56.3 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Afghanistan, on the other hand, 48.3 children do as of 2024.
have 47.3% more children
In Lesotho, there are approximately 23.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Afghanistan, there are 35.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 58.8% less likely to be literate
In Lesotho, the literacy rate is 90.5% as of 2024. In Afghanistan, it is 37.3% as of 2021.
Basic Needs
be 48.9% more likely to have access to electricity
In Lesotho, approximately 57% of people have electricity access (85% in urban areas, and 45% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Afghanistan, that number is 85% of people on average (96% in urban areas, and 81% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 68.9% less likely to have internet access
In Lesotho, approximately 51.8% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Afghanistan, about 16.1% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 18.9% more on healthcare
Lesotho spends 12.6% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Afghanistan, that number is 15.0% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 11.6% more likely to die in a road accident
In Lesotho, road accidents kill 21.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Afghanistan, they kill 24.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 78.9% less home broadband
Lesotho has 0.4 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Afghanistan has 0.1 as of 2023.
live with 21.3 times more strain on fresh water
Lesotho withdraws 3% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Afghanistan withdraws 55% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 34.9% less CO2
Lesotho emits 0.4 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Afghanistan emits 0.3 tonnes as of 2024.
be 43.0% more likely to die from air pollution
In Lesotho, air pollution causes 100.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Afghanistan, it causes 143.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021). How we calculate this
Compare further: Lesotho vs. Afghanistan
Afghanistan: At a glance
How big is Afghanistan compared to Lesotho? See an in-depth size comparison.