Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Malawi instead of Marshall Islands, you would:
Health
be 80.9% less likely to be obese
In Marshall Islands, 42.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Malawi, that number is 8.0% of people as of 2024.
see 85.7% less spent on your healthcare
Marshall Islands spends $874 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Malawi spends $125 as of 2023.
have 18.6% less access to essential health services
Marshall Islands scores 59 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Malawi scores 48 as of 2021.
Economy
make 92.1% less money
Marshall Islands has a GDP per capita of $8,489 as of 2025, while in Malawi, the GDP per capita is $672 as of 2025.
Life
have 55.0% more children
In Marshall Islands, there are approximately 20.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Malawi, there are 31.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 45.2% more likely to die during childbirth
In Marshall Islands, approximately 155.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Malawi, 225.0 women do as of 2023.
be 29.7% less likely to be literate
In Marshall Islands, the literacy rate is 95.8% as of 2021. In Malawi, it is 67.3% as of 2021.
be 67.4% more likely to die during infancy
In Marshall Islands, approximately 22.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Malawi, on the other hand, 38.0 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 84.4% less likely to have access to electricity
In Marshall Islands, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Malawi, that number is 16% of people on average (58% in urban areas, and 6% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 71.2% less likely to have internet access
In Marshall Islands, approximately 65.9% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Malawi, about 19.0% do as of 2024.
be 16.5% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Marshall Islands, approximately 87% of people have access to drinking water (86% in urban areas, and 94% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Malawi, that number is 73% of people on average (86% in urban areas, and 70% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 64.3% less on education
Marshall Islands spends 7.7% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Malawi spends 2.8% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 51.3% less on healthcare
Marshall Islands spends 13.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Malawi, that number is 6.5% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 69.7% more likely to die in a road accident
In Marshall Islands, road accidents kill 11.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Malawi, they kill 20.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 96.2% less home broadband
Marshall Islands has 2.4 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Malawi has 0.1 as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2021). How we calculate this
Compare further: Marshall Islands vs. Malawi
Malawi: At a glance
How big is Malawi compared to Marshall Islands? See an in-depth size comparison.