Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Burkina Faso instead of Malawi, you would:
Health
be 91.9% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Malawi, 6.2% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, that number is 0.5% of people as of 2024.
see 78.6% more spent on your healthcare
Malawi spends $125 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Burkina Faso spends $224 as of 2023.
have 2.7 times more doctors per person
Malawi has 0.5 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Burkina Faso has 1.5 as of 2022.
live 6.3 years less
In Malawi, the average life expectancy is 68 years (64 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, that number is 61 years (59 years for men, 63 years for women) as of 2024.
have 16.7% less access to essential health services
Malawi scores 48 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Burkina Faso scores 40 as of 2021.
be 12.3% more likely to die by suicide
Malawi has a suicide rate of 7.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Burkina Faso, it is 8.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 31.4% less likely to be unemployed
In Malawi, 5.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Burkina Faso, that number is 3.5% as of 2025.
make 70.9% more money
Malawi has a GDP per capita of $672 as of 2025, while in Burkina Faso, the GDP per capita is $1,148 as of 2025.
Life
be 38.2% less likely to be literate
In Malawi, the literacy rate is 67.3% as of 2021. In Burkina Faso, it is 41.6% as of 2023.
be 14.7% more likely to die during infancy
In Malawi, approximately 38.0 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, on the other hand, 43.6 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 39.1% more likely to have access to electricity
In Malawi, approximately 16% of people have electricity access (58% in urban areas, and 6% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Burkina Faso, that number is 22% of people on average (63% in urban areas, and 2% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 49.0% more likely to have internet access
In Malawi, approximately 19.0% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, about 28.2% do as of 2024.
be 31.6% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Malawi, approximately 73% of people have access to drinking water (86% in urban areas, and 70% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Burkina Faso, that number is 50% of people on average (81% in urban areas, and 34% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 93.8% more on education
Malawi spends 2.8% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Burkina Faso spends 5.3% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 19.4% more on healthcare
Malawi spends 6.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Burkina Faso, that number is 7.8% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 37.6% more likely to die in a road accident
In Malawi, road accidents kill 20.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Burkina Faso, they kill 27.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 9.4 times more home broadband
Malawi has 0.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Burkina Faso has 0.8 as of 2024.
live with 55.3% less strain on fresh water
Malawi withdraws 18% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Burkina Faso withdraws 8% as of 2022.
Environment
be 95.3% more likely to die from air pollution
In Malawi, air pollution causes 43.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Burkina Faso, it causes 84.0 as of 2019.
emit 22.7% more CO2
Malawi emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Burkina Faso emits 0.3 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2021). How we calculate this
Compare further: Malawi vs. Burkina Faso
Burkina Faso: At a glance
How big is Burkina Faso compared to Malawi? See an in-depth size comparison.