Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of Nicaragua, you would:
Health
be 76.5% less likely to be obese
In Nicaragua, 34.9% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.2% of people as of 2024.
live 13.1 years less
In Nicaragua, the average life expectancy is 75 years (72 years for men, 78 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.
see 76.9% less spent on your healthcare
Nicaragua spends $689 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sierra Leone spends $159 as of 2023.
have 41.4% less access to essential health services
Nicaragua scores 70 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sierra Leone scores 41 as of 2021.
be 44.8% more likely to die by suicide
Nicaragua 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 37.5% less likely to be unemployed
In Nicaragua, 5.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sierra Leone, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.
be 2.3 times more likely to live below the poverty line
In Nicaragua, 24.9% live below the poverty line as of 2016. In Sierra Leone, however, that number is 56.8% as of 2018.
make 73.3% less money
Nicaragua has a GDP per capita of $3,173 as of 2025, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.
Life
have 57.3% more children
In Nicaragua, there are approximately 19.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, there are 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 5.9 times more 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 Sierra Leone, 354.0 women do as of 2023.
be 5.8 times more 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 Sierra Leone, on the other hand, 54.6 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 59.8% less 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 Sierra Leone, that number is 36% of people on average (56% in urban areas, and 19% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 59.1% less likely to have internet access
In Nicaragua, approximately 61.4% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 43.1% less on healthcare
Nicaragua spends 8.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 4.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 55.8% less coastline
Nicaragua has a total of 910 km of coastline. In Sierra Leone, that number is 402 km.
Safety
be 80.4% less likely to be murdered
Nicaragua has a homicide rate of 11.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, that number is 2.2 per 100,000 as of 2020.
Infrastructure
live with 77.5% less strain on fresh water
Nicaragua withdraws 2% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sierra Leone withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 79.5% less CO2
Nicaragua emits 0.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 2.6 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Nicaragua, air pollution causes 38.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, it causes 97.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2016–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Nicaragua vs. Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: At a glance
How big is Sierra Leone compared to Nicaragua? See an in-depth size comparison.