Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Rwanda instead of Malawi, you would:
Health
be 67.7% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Malawi, 6.2% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Rwanda, that number is 2.0% of people as of 2024.
be 30.2% less likely to be obese
In Malawi, 8.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Rwanda, that number is 5.6% of people as of 2024.
see 41.2% more spent on your healthcare
Malawi spends $125 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Rwanda spends $177 as of 2023.
have 66.7% more doctors per person
Malawi has 0.5 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Rwanda has 0.9 as of 2022.
be 14.7% more likely to die by suicide
Malawi has a suicide rate of 7.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Rwanda, it is 8.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 42.1% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Malawi, 47.3% live below the poverty line as of 2024. In Rwanda, however, that number is 27.4% as of 2023.
make 67.3% more money
Malawi has a GDP per capita of $672 as of 2025, while in Rwanda, the GDP per capita is $1,124 as of 2025.
be 2.2 times more likely to be unemployed
In Malawi, 5.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Rwanda, that number is 11.4% as of 2025.
Life
be 17.0% more likely to be literate
In Malawi, the literacy rate is 67.3% as of 2021. In Rwanda, it is 78.8% as of 2022.
be 22.6% less 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 Rwanda, on the other hand, 29.4 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 4.1 times 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 Rwanda, that number is 64% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 58% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 67.2% more likely to have internet access
In Malawi, approximately 19.0% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Rwanda, about 31.7% do as of 2024.
be 16.0% 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 Rwanda, that number is 61% of people on average (88% in urban areas, and 56% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 21.4% less on healthcare
Malawi spends 6.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Rwanda, that number is 5.1% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 67.6% more on education
Malawi spends 2.8% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Rwanda spends 4.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
Safety
be 42.6% less likely to die in a road accident
In Malawi, road accidents kill 20.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Rwanda, they kill 11.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 6.7 times more home broadband
Malawi has 0.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Rwanda has 0.6 as of 2024.
live with 15.4% more strain on fresh water
Malawi withdraws 18% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Rwanda withdraws 20% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 27.3% less CO2
Malawi emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Rwanda emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 44.2% more likely to die from air pollution
In Malawi, air pollution causes 43.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Rwanda, it causes 62.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2021). How we calculate this
Compare further: Malawi vs. Rwanda
Rwanda: At a glance
How big is Rwanda compared to Malawi? See an in-depth size comparison.