Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of Nigeria, you would:
Health
live 7.3 years longer
In Nigeria, the average life expectancy is 55 years (54 years for men, 55 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.
be 40.1% less likely to be obese
In Nigeria, 13.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.2% of people as of 2024.
be 16.7% more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Nigeria, 1.2% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 1.4% of people as of 2024.
see 38.9% less spent on your healthcare
Nigeria spends $260 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sierra Leone spends $159 as of 2023.
have 64.7% fewer doctors per person
Nigeria has 3.8 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Sierra Leone has 1.3 as of 2022.
be 23.0% more likely to die by suicide
Nigeria has a suicide rate of 5.0 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
make 30.9% less money
Nigeria has a GDP per capita of $1,224 as of 2025, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.
Life
be 64.4% less likely to die during childbirth
In Nigeria, approximately 993.0 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 21.8% less likely to die during infancy
In Nigeria, approximately 69.8 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.
be 31.0% less likely to be literate
In Nigeria, the literacy rate is 70.4% as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, it is 48.6% as of 2022.
Basic Needs
be 42.0% less likely to have access to electricity
In Nigeria, approximately 61% of people have electricity access (85% in urban areas, and 33% 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 39.1% less likely to have internet access
In Nigeria, approximately 41.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.
be 17.2% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Nigeria, approximately 82% of people have access to drinking water (95% in urban areas, and 67% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 68% of people on average (82% in urban areas, and 57% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 8.2 times more on education
Nigeria spends 0.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 12.6% more on healthcare
Nigeria spends 4.2% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 4.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 52.9% less coastline
Nigeria has a total of 853 km of coastline. In Sierra Leone, that number is 402 km.
Safety
be 85.9% less likely to be murdered
Nigeria has a homicide rate of 15.8 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 2.2 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 19.8% less likely to die in a road accident
In Nigeria, road accidents kill 17.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, they kill 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 94.8% less strain on fresh water
Nigeria withdraws 10% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sierra Leone withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 70.2% less CO2
Nigeria emits 0.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 26.0% more likely to die from air pollution
In Nigeria, air pollution causes 77.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, it causes 97.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2022), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Nigeria vs. Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: At a glance
How big is Sierra Leone compared to Nigeria? See an in-depth size comparison.