Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Saudi Arabia instead of Nicaragua, you would:
Health
live 3.9 years longer
In Nicaragua, the average life expectancy is 75 years (72 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2024. In Saudi Arabia, that number is 79 years (77 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.
see 5.0 times more spent on your healthcare
Nicaragua spends $689 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Saudi Arabia spends $3,475 as of 2023.
be 77.6% less likely to die by suicide
Nicaragua has a suicide rate of 4.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Saudi Arabia, it is 0.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 14.9% more likely to be obese
In Nicaragua, 34.9% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Saudi Arabia, that number is 40.1% of people as of 2024.
Economy
be 39.7% less likely to be unemployed
In Nicaragua, 5.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Saudi Arabia, that number is 3.0% as of 2025.
make 10.9 times more money
Nicaragua has a GDP per capita of $3,173 as of 2025, while in Saudi Arabia, the GDP per capita is $34,537 as of 2025.
Life
be 88.3% less likely to die during childbirth
In Nicaragua, approximately 60.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Saudi Arabia, 7.0 women do as of 2023.
be 50.0% less likely to die during infancy
In Nicaragua, approximately 9.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, 4.7 children do as of 2024.
have 13.8% fewer children
In Nicaragua, there are approximately 19.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Saudi Arabia, there are 16.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 13.3% more likely to have access to electricity
In Nicaragua, approximately 88% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 71% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Saudi Arabia, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 62.9% more likely to have internet access
In Nicaragua, approximately 61.4% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Saudi Arabia, about 100.0% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 31.4% less on healthcare
Nicaragua spends 8.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Saudi Arabia, that number is 5.7% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 56.1% more on education
Nicaragua spends 2.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Saudi Arabia spends 4.5% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Geography
see 2.9 times more coastline
Nicaragua has a total of 910 km of coastline. In Saudi Arabia, that number is 2,640 km.
Safety
be 91.7% less likely to be murdered
Nicaragua has a homicide rate of 11.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Saudi Arabia, that number is 0.9 per 100,000 as of 2019.
be 36.0% more likely to die in a road accident
In Nicaragua, road accidents kill 13.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Saudi Arabia, they kill 18.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 7.6 times more home broadband
Nicaragua has 5.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Saudi Arabia has 44.1 as of 2024.
use 18.6 times more electricity
Nicaragua uses 641 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Saudi Arabia uses 11,911 kWh as of 2023.
live with 438.8 times more strain on fresh water
Nicaragua withdraws 2% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Saudi Arabia withdraws 974% as of 2022.
Environment
be 2.4 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Nicaragua, air pollution causes 38.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Saudi Arabia, it causes 91.0 as of 2019.
emit 22.3 times more CO2
Nicaragua emits 0.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Saudi Arabia emits 18.5 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2019–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Nicaragua vs. Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: At a glance
How big is Saudi Arabia compared to Nicaragua? See an in-depth size comparison.