Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of New Caledonia, you would:

Health

live 17.0 years less

In New Caledonia, the average life expectancy is 79 years (76 years for men, 81 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.

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Economy

be 71.8% less likely to be unemployed

In New Caledonia, 11.2% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sierra Leone, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.

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make 97.1% less money

New Caledonia has a GDP per capita of $29,213 as of 2024, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.

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Life

have 2.1 times more children

In New Caledonia, there are approximately 14.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, there are 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 64.5% less likely to have access to electricity

In New Caledonia, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% 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.

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be 69.4% less likely to have internet access

In New Caledonia, approximately 82.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.

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be 31.6% less likely to have access to drinking water

In New Caledonia, approximately 100% of people have access to drinking water as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, 68% of people do as of 2024.

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Geography

see 82.2% less coastline

New Caledonia has a total of 2,254 km of coastline. In Sierra Leone, that number is 402 km.

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Environment

emit 99.0% less CO2

New Caledonia emits 17.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2023–2025), The World Factbook (2021). How we calculate this

Compare further: New Caledonia vs. Sierra Leone

Cost of Living Comparison · 6 categories - 2026 data
Sierra Leone is 45.5% cheaper than New Caledonia overall
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Size Comparison · See true size
New Caledonia is about 3.9 times smaller than Sierra Leone.
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Moving from New Caledonia to Sierra Leone · Cost, visas & climate
Compare cost of living, salary and climate.
→

Sierra Leone: At a glance

Sierra Leone is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 71,620 sq km. Democracy is slowly being reestablished after the civil war from 1991 to 2002 that resulted in tens of thousands of deaths and the displacement of more than 2 million people (about a third of the population). The military, which took over full responsibility for security following the departure of UN peacekeepers at the end of 2005, is increasingly developing as a guarantor of the country's stability. The armed forces remained on the sideline during the 2007 and 2012 national elections, and over the past year have deployed over 850 peacekeepers in the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM). As of January 2014, Sierra Leone also fielded 122 staff for five UN peacekeeping missions. In March 2014, the closure of the UN Integrated Peacebuilding Office in Sierra Leone (UNIPSIL) marked the end of more than 15 years of peacekeeping and political operations in Sierra Leone. The government's priorities include furthering development, creating jobs, and stamping out endemic corruption.
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How big is Sierra Leone compared to New Caledonia? See an in-depth size comparison.

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