Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of Malawi, you would:
Health
be 77.4% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Malawi, 6.2% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 1.4% of people as of 2024.
see 26.8% more spent on your healthcare
Malawi spends $125 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sierra Leone spends $159 as of 2023.
have 2.5 times more doctors per person
Malawi has 0.5 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Sierra Leone has 1.3 as of 2022.
be 18.9% less likely to die by suicide
Malawi has a suicide rate of 7.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 5.6 years less
In Malawi, the average life expectancy is 68 years (64 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 62 years (60 years for men, 64 years for women) as of 2024.
have 14.6% less access to essential health services
Malawi scores 48 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sierra Leone scores 41 as of 2021.
Economy
be 37.9% less likely to be unemployed
In Malawi, 5.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sierra Leone, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.
make 26.0% more money
Malawi has a GDP per capita of $672 as of 2025, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.
Life
be 57.3% more likely to die during childbirth
In Malawi, approximately 225.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, 354.0 women do as of 2023.
be 27.8% less likely to be literate
In Malawi, the literacy rate is 67.3% as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 48.6% as of 2022.
be 43.7% 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 Sierra Leone, on the other hand, 54.6 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 2.3 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 Sierra Leone, that number is 36% of people on average (56% in urban areas, and 19% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 32.4% more likely to have internet access
In Malawi, approximately 19.0% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 27.7% less on healthcare
Malawi spends 6.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 4.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 31.7% less likely to die in a road accident
In Malawi, road accidents kill 20.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, they kill 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 97.1% less strain on fresh water
Malawi withdraws 18% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sierra Leone withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 22.7% less CO2
Malawi emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 2.3 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Malawi, air pollution causes 43.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, it causes 97.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2021–2022). How we calculate this
Compare further: Malawi vs. Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: At a glance
How big is Sierra Leone compared to Malawi? See an in-depth size comparison.