If you lived in Ireland instead of Libya, you would:

Health

live 11.9 years longer

In Libya, the average life expectancy is 71 years (70 years for men, 73 years for women) as of 2024. In Ireland, that number is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024.

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be 17.2% less likely to be obese

In Libya, 33.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Ireland, that number is 27.9% of people as of 2024.

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see 8.3 times more spent on your healthcare

Libya spends $1,055 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Ireland spends $8,772 as of 2024.

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have 33.9% more access to essential health services

Libya scores 62 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Ireland scores 83 as of 2021.

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be 71.0% more likely to die by suicide

Libya has a suicide rate of 5.0 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Ireland, it is 8.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 75.3% less likely to be unemployed

In Libya, 18.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Ireland, that number is 4.6% as of 2025.

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make 20.4 times more money

Libya has a GDP per capita of $6,449 as of 2025, while in Ireland, the GDP per capita is $131,592 as of 2025.

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Life

be 93.2% less likely to die during childbirth

In Libya, approximately 59.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Ireland, 4.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 57.0% less likely to die during infancy

In Libya, approximately 7.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Ireland, on the other hand, 3.4 children do as of 2024.

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have 39.4% fewer children

In Libya, there are approximately 16.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Ireland, there are 10.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 36.6% more likely to have access to electricity

In Libya, approximately 73% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 96% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Ireland, 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 18.6% more likely to have internet access

In Libya, approximately 82.0% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Ireland, about 97.2% do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 12.3% less on healthcare

Libya spends 7.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Ireland, that number is 6.8% of GDP as of 2024.

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Geography

see 18.2% less coastline

Libya has a total of 1,770 km of coastline. In Ireland, that number is 1,448 km.

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Safety

be 91.8% less likely to die in a road accident

In Libya, road accidents kill 34.0 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Ireland, they kill 2.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 7.1 times more home broadband

Libya has 4.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Ireland has 32.3 as of 2024.

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live with 99.0% less strain on fresh water

Libya withdraws 817% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Ireland withdraws 8% as of 2022.

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use 65.9% more electricity

Libya uses 3,796 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Ireland uses 6,298 kWh as of 2024.

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Environment

be 75.9% less likely to die from air pollution

In Libya, air pollution causes 54.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Ireland, it causes 13.0 as of 2019.

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emit 30.3% less CO2

Libya emits 8.7 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Ireland emits 6.0 tonnes as of 2024.

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

Ireland: At a glance

Ireland is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 68,883 sq km. Celtic tribes arrived on the island between 600 and 150 B.C. Invasions by Norsemen that began in the late 8th century were finally ended when King Brian BORU defeated the Danes in 1014. Norman invasions began in the 12th century and set off more than seven centuries of Anglo-Irish struggle marked by fierce rebellions and harsh repressions. The Irish famine of the mid-19th century saw the population of the island drop by one third through starvation and emigration. For more than a century after that the population of the island continued to fall only to begin growing again in the 1960s. Over the last 50 years, Ireland's high birthrate has made it demographically one of the youngest populations in the EU. The modern Irish state traces its origins to the failed 1916 Easter Monday Uprising which touched off several years of guerrilla warfare resulting in independence from the UK in 1921 for 26 southern counties; six northern counties remained part of the UK. Unresolved issues in Northern Ireland erupted into years of violence known as the "Troubles" that began in the 1960s. The Government of Ireland was part of a process along with the UK and US Governments that helped broker what is known as The Good Friday Agreement in Northern Ireland in 1998. This initiated a new phase of cooperation between Irish and British governments. Ireland was neutral in World War II and continues its policy of military neutrality. Ireland joined the European Community in 1973 and the Eurozone currency union in 1999. The economic boom years of the Celtic Tiger (1995-2007) saw rapid economic growth, which came to an abrupt end in 2008 with the meltdown of the Irish banking system. Today the economy is recovering, fueled by large and growing foreign direct investment, especially from US multi-nationals.
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