Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of Saudi Arabia, you would:
Health
be 79.6% less likely to be obese
In Saudi Arabia, 40.1% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.2% of people as of 2024.
be 14.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Saudi Arabia, 0.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 1.4% of people as of 2024.
live 17.0 years less
In Saudi Arabia, the average life expectancy is 79 years (77 years for men, 81 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 95.4% less spent on your healthcare
Saudi Arabia spends $3,475 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sierra Leone spends $159 as of 2023.
have 96.1% fewer doctors per person
Saudi Arabia has 34.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Sierra Leone has 1.3 as of 2022.
have 44.6% less access to essential health services
Saudi Arabia scores 74 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sierra Leone scores 41 as of 2021.
be 6.5 times more likely to die by suicide
Saudi Arabia has a suicide rate of 0.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
make 97.5% less money
Saudi Arabia has a GDP per capita of $34,537 as of 2025, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.
Life
have 82.5% more children
In Saudi Arabia, there are approximately 16.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, there are 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 50.6 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 Sierra Leone, 354.0 women do as of 2023.
be 50.4% less likely to be literate
In Saudi Arabia, the literacy rate is 97.9% as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, it is 48.6% as of 2022.
be 11.6 times 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 Sierra Leone, on the other hand, 54.6 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 64.5% 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 Sierra Leone, that number is 36% of people on average (56% in urban areas, and 19% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 74.9% less likely to have internet access
In Saudi Arabia, approximately 100.0% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.
be 31.3% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Saudi Arabia, approximately 99% of people have access to drinking water (99% in urban areas, and 100% 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 41.5% less on education
Saudi Arabia spends 4.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 17.0% less on healthcare
Saudi Arabia spends 5.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 4.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 84.8% less coastline
Saudi Arabia has a total of 2,640 km of coastline. In Sierra Leone, that number is 402 km.
Safety
be 25.4% less likely to die in a road accident
In Saudi Arabia, road accidents kill 18.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, they kill 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 2.4 times more likely to be murdered
Saudi Arabia has a homicide rate of 0.9 per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, that number is 2.2 per 100,000 as of 2020.
Infrastructure
live with 99.9% less strain on fresh water
Saudi Arabia withdraws 974% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sierra Leone withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 99.1% less CO2
Saudi Arabia emits 18.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2019–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021), The World Factbook (2022), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Saudi Arabia vs. Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: At a glance
How big is Sierra Leone compared to Saudi Arabia? See an in-depth size comparison.