Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Ethiopia instead of Maldives, you would:
Health
be 83.7% less likely to be obese
In Maldives, 17.9% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Ethiopia, that number is 2.9% of people as of 2024.
live 13.7 years less
In Maldives, the average life expectancy is 81 years (80 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2024. In Ethiopia, that number is 68 years (64 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024.
see 96.3% less spent on your healthcare
Maldives spends $2,288 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Ethiopia spends $86 as of 2023.
have 42.6% less access to essential health services
Maldives scores 61 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Ethiopia scores 35 as of 2021.
be 4.1 times more likely to die by suicide
Maldives has a suicide rate of 1.5 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Ethiopia, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 26.4% less likely to be unemployed
In Maldives, 4.5% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Ethiopia, that number is 3.3% as of 2025.
be 6.1 times more likely to live below the poverty line
In Maldives, 5.4% live below the poverty line as of 2019. In Ethiopia, however, that number is 33.1% as of 2021.
make 93.6% less money
Maldives has a GDP per capita of $14,615 as of 2025, while in Ethiopia, the GDP per capita is $933 as of 2025.
Life
have 3.0 times more children
In Maldives, there are approximately 10.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Ethiopia, there are 31.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 6.1 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Maldives, approximately 32.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Ethiopia, 195.0 women do as of 2023.
be 38.2% less likely to be literate
In Maldives, the literacy rate is 97.9% as of 2021. In Ethiopia, it is 60.5% as of 2022.
be 7.3 times more likely to die during infancy
In Maldives, approximately 4.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Ethiopia, on the other hand, 34.5 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 44.6% less likely to have access to electricity
In Maldives, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Ethiopia, that number is 55% of people on average (95% in urban areas, and 44% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 74.3% less likely to have internet access
In Maldives, approximately 85.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Ethiopia, about 21.9% do as of 2024.
be 44.3% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Maldives, approximately 100% of people have access to drinking water (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Ethiopia, that number is 56% of people on average (83% in urban areas, and 47% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 55.5% less on education
Maldives spends 5.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Ethiopia spends 2.3% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
spend 69.7% less on healthcare
Maldives spends 9.2% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Ethiopia, that number is 2.8% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 13.6 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Maldives, road accidents kill 1.3 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Ethiopia, they kill 17.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 97.0% less home broadband
Maldives has 19.6 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Ethiopia has 0.6 as of 2024.
live with 2.1 times more strain on fresh water
Maldives withdraws 16% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Ethiopia withdraws 32% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 95.8% less CO2
Maldives emits 3.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Ethiopia emits 0.1 tonnes as of 2024.
be 58.6% more likely to die from air pollution
In Maldives, air pollution causes 29.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Ethiopia, it causes 46.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2019–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2021). How we calculate this
Compare further: Maldives vs. Ethiopia
Ethiopia: At a glance
How big is Ethiopia compared to Maldives? See an in-depth size comparison.