Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Benin instead of Mali, you would:
Health
see 32.7% more spent on your healthcare
Mali spends $104 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Benin spends $138 as of 2023.
have 14.9% more doctors per person
Mali has 1.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Benin has 2.2 as of 2023.
be 71.2% more likely to die by suicide
Mali has a suicide rate of 4.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Benin, it is 7.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 43.8% less likely to be unemployed
In Mali, 2.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Benin, that number is 1.6% as of 2025.
be 20.4% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Mali, 45.5% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Benin, however, that number is 36.2% as of 2021.
make 39.0% more money
Mali has a GDP per capita of $1,193 as of 2025, while in Benin, the GDP per capita is $1,658 as of 2025.
Life
be 44.2% more likely to be literate
In Mali, the literacy rate is 35.6% as of 2024. In Benin, it is 51.4% as of 2022.
be 41.1% more likely to die during childbirth
In Mali, approximately 367.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Benin, 518.0 women do as of 2023.
have 15.5% fewer children
In Mali, there are approximately 39.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Benin, there are 33.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 19.4% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Mali, approximately 86% of people have access to drinking water (94% in urban areas, and 80% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Benin, that number is 70% of people on average (76% in urban areas, and 63% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 22.7% less on education
Mali spends 4.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Benin spends 3.2% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 12.3% less on healthcare
Mali spends 3.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Benin, that number is 3.3% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 22.8% more likely to die in a road accident
In Mali, road accidents kill 20.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Benin, they kill 24.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 87.8% less strain on fresh water
Mali withdraws 8% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Benin withdraws 1% as of 2022.
find 63.6% less home broadband
Mali has 0.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Benin has 0.3 as of 2024.
Environment
be 18.5% more likely to die from air pollution
In Mali, air pollution causes 65.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Benin, it causes 77.0 as of 2019.
emit 63.3% more CO2
Mali emits 0.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Benin emits 0.5 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021). How we calculate this
Compare further: Mali vs. Benin
Benin: At a glance
How big is Benin compared to Mali? See an in-depth size comparison.