Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Nicaragua instead of Saudi Arabia, you would:
Health
be 13.0% less likely to be obese
In Saudi Arabia, 40.1% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Nicaragua, that number is 34.9% of people as of 2024.
live 3.9 years less
In Saudi Arabia, the average life expectancy is 79 years (77 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024. In Nicaragua, that number is 75 years (72 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2024.
see 80.2% less spent on your healthcare
Saudi Arabia spends $3,475 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Nicaragua spends $689 as of 2023.
be 4.5 times more likely to die by suicide
Saudi Arabia has a suicide rate of 0.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Nicaragua, it is 4.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 65.8% more likely to be unemployed
In Saudi Arabia, 3.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Nicaragua, that number is 5.0% as of 2025.
make 90.8% less money
Saudi Arabia has a GDP per capita of $34,537 as of 2025, while in Nicaragua, the GDP per capita is $3,173 as of 2025.
Life
have 16.0% more children
In Saudi Arabia, there are approximately 16.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Nicaragua, there are 19.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 8.6 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Saudi Arabia, approximately 7.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Nicaragua, 60.0 women do as of 2023.
be 100.0% more likely to die during infancy
In Saudi Arabia, approximately 4.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Nicaragua, on the other hand, 9.4 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 11.7% less likely to have access to electricity
In Saudi Arabia, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Nicaragua, that number is 88% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 71% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 38.6% less likely to have internet access
In Saudi Arabia, approximately 100.0% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Nicaragua, about 61.4% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 35.9% less on education
Saudi Arabia spends 4.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Nicaragua spends 2.9% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 45.9% more on healthcare
Saudi Arabia spends 5.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Nicaragua, that number is 8.3% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 65.5% less coastline
Saudi Arabia has a total of 2,640 km of coastline. In Nicaragua, that number is 910 km.
Safety
be 26.5% less likely to die in a road accident
In Saudi Arabia, road accidents kill 18.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Nicaragua, they kill 13.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 12.1 times more likely to be murdered
Saudi Arabia has a homicide rate of 0.9 per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Nicaragua, that number is 11.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 99.8% less strain on fresh water
Saudi Arabia withdraws 974% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Nicaragua withdraws 2% as of 2022.
find 86.9% less home broadband
Saudi Arabia has 44.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Nicaragua has 5.8 as of 2024.
use 94.6% less electricity
Saudi Arabia uses 11,911 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Nicaragua uses 641 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 58.2% less likely to die from air pollution
In Saudi Arabia, air pollution causes 91.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Nicaragua, it causes 38.0 as of 2019.
emit 95.5% less CO2
Saudi Arabia emits 18.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Nicaragua emits 0.8 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: Saudi Arabia vs. Nicaragua
Nicaragua: At a glance
How big is Nicaragua compared to Saudi Arabia? See an in-depth size comparison.