If you lived in Nicaragua instead of Macedonia, you would:

Health

be 26.6% less likely to die by suicide

Macedonia has a suicide rate of 5.8 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Nicaragua, it is 4.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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live 1.5 years less

In Macedonia, the average life expectancy is 77 years (74 years for men, 79 years for women) as of 2024. In Nicaragua, that number is 75 years (72 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2024.

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be 30.1% more likely to be obese

In Macedonia, 26.8% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Nicaragua, that number is 34.9% of people as of 2024.

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see 61.9% less spent on your healthcare

Macedonia spends $1,808 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Nicaragua spends $689 as of 2023.

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Economy

be 58.9% less likely to be unemployed

In Macedonia, 12.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Nicaragua, that number is 5.0% as of 2025.

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make 69.7% less money

Macedonia has a GDP per capita of $10,490 as of 2025, while in Nicaragua, the GDP per capita is $3,173 as of 2025.

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Life

have 2.2 times more children

In Macedonia, there are approximately 8.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Nicaragua, there are 19.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 20.0 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Macedonia, approximately 3.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Nicaragua, 60.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 3.8 times more likely to die during infancy

In Macedonia, approximately 2.5 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Nicaragua, on the other hand, 9.4 children do as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 11.7% less likely to have access to electricity

In Macedonia, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Nicaragua, that number is 88% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 71% in rural areas) as of 2023.

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be 34.0% less likely to have internet access

In Macedonia, approximately 93.1% of the population has internet access as of 2025. In Nicaragua, about 61.4% do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 11.7% more on healthcare

Macedonia spends 7.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Nicaragua, that number is 8.3% of GDP as of 2023.

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Safety

be 7.4 times more likely to be murdered

Macedonia has a homicide rate of 1.5 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Nicaragua, that number is 11.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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be 2.4 times more likely to die in a road accident

In Macedonia, road accidents kill 5.7 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Nicaragua, they kill 13.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

live with 95.8% less strain on fresh water

Macedonia withdraws 53% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Nicaragua withdraws 2% as of 2022.

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find 80.7% less home broadband

Macedonia has 29.9 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Nicaragua has 5.8 as of 2024.

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use 80.7% less electricity

Macedonia uses 3,320 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Nicaragua uses 641 kWh as of 2023.

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Environment

be 38.7% less likely to die from air pollution

In Macedonia, air pollution causes 62.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Nicaragua, it causes 38.0 as of 2019.

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emit 79.2% less CO2

Macedonia emits 4.0 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Nicaragua emits 0.8 tonnes as of 2024.

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

Nicaragua: At a glance

Nicaragua is a sovereign country in Central America/Caribbean, with a total land area of approximately 119,990 sq km. The Pacific coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades. Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in a short-lived civil war that brought the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador caused the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. After losing free and fair elections in 1990, 1996, and 2001, former Sandinista President Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra was elected president in 2006 and reelected in 2011. The 2008 municipal elections, 2010 regional elections, 2011 presidential elections, 2012 municipal elections, and 2013 regional elections were marred by widespread irregularities. Nicaragua's infrastructure and economy - hard hit by the earlier civil war and by Hurricane Mitch in 1998 - are slowly being rebuilt, but democratic institutions have been weakened under the ORTEGA administration.
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