If you lived in Guinea-Bissau instead of New York, you would:

Health

be 57.5% less likely to be obese

In New York, 29.9% of adults are obese as of 2022. In Guinea-Bissau, that number is 12.7% of people as of 2024.

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Economy

be 39.3% less likely to be unemployed

In New York, 4.4% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Guinea-Bissau, that number is 2.7% as of 2025.

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be 3.8 times more likely to live below the poverty line

In New York, 13.3% live below the poverty line as of 2023. In Guinea-Bissau, however, that number is 50.5% as of 2021.

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make 98.8% less money

New York has a GDP per capita of $91,992 as of 2024, while in Guinea-Bissau, the GDP per capita is $1,124 as of 2025.

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Basic Needs

be 66.8% less likely to have internet access

In New York, approximately 89.7% of the population has internet access as of 2023. In Guinea-Bissau, about 29.8% do as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), US Census Bureau (American Community Survey) (2023), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (PLACES) (2022), World Health Organization (2024), Bureau of Labor Statistics (2025), Bureau of Economic Analysis (2024). How we calculate this

Guinea-Bissau: At a glance

Guinea-Bissau is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 28,120 sq km. Since independence from Portugal in 1974, Guinea-Bissau has experienced considerable political and military upheaval. In 1980, a military coup established authoritarian dictator Joao Bernardo 'Nino' VIEIRA as president. Despite setting a path to a market economy and multiparty system, VIEIRA's regime was characterized by the suppression of political opposition and the purging of political rivals. Several coup attempts through the 1980s and early 1990s failed to unseat him. In 1994 VIEIRA was elected president in the country's first free elections. A military mutiny and resulting civil war in 1998 eventually led to VIEIRA's ouster in May 1999. In February 2000, a transitional government turned over power to opposition leader Kumba YALA after he was elected president in transparent polling. In September 2003, after only three years in office, YALA was overthrown in a bloodless military coup, and businessman Henrique ROSA was sworn in as interim president. In 2005, former President VIEIRA was re-elected president pledging to pursue economic development and national reconciliation; he was assassinated in March 2009. Malam Bacai SANHA was elected in an emergency election held in June 2009, but he passed away in January 2012 from an existing illness. A military coup in April 2012 prevented Guinea-Bissau's second-round presidential election - to determine SANHA's successor - from taking place.
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