Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of Mali, you would:
Health
live 1.3 years longer
In Mali, the average life expectancy is 61 years (59 years for men, 62 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.
be 38.4% less likely to be obese
In Mali, 13.3% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.2% of people as of 2024.
see 53.0% more spent on your healthcare
Mali spends $104 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sierra Leone spends $159 as of 2023.
be 75.0% more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Mali, 0.8% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 1.4% of people as of 2024.
have 28.7% fewer doctors per person
Mali has 1.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Sierra Leone has 1.3 as of 2022.
be 47.6% more likely to die by suicide
Mali has a suicide rate of 4.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 11.3% more likely to be unemployed
In Mali, 2.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sierra Leone, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.
be 24.8% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Mali, 45.5% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, however, that number is 56.8% as of 2018.
make 29.1% less money
Mali has a GDP per capita of $1,193 as of 2025, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.
Life
be 36.4% more likely to be literate
In Mali, the literacy rate is 35.6% as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, it is 48.6% as of 2022.
be 14.9% more likely to die during infancy
In Mali, approximately 47.5 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.
have 23.8% fewer children
In Mali, there are approximately 39.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, there are 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 34.9% less likely to have access to electricity
In Mali, approximately 54% of people have electricity access (92% in urban areas, and 23% 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 31.8% less likely to have internet access
In Mali, approximately 36.8% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.
be 21.2% 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 Sierra Leone, that number is 68% of people on average (82% in urban areas, and 57% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 37.3% less on education
Mali spends 4.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 23.9% more on healthcare
Mali spends 3.8% 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 Mali, 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 93.8% less strain on fresh water
Mali withdraws 8% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sierra Leone withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 43.3% less CO2
Mali emits 0.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 49.2% more likely to die from air pollution
In Mali, air pollution causes 65.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, it causes 97.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2018–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2022). How we calculate this
Compare further: Mali vs. Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: At a glance
How big is Sierra Leone compared to Mali? See an in-depth size comparison.