Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of Senegal, you would:
Health
be 29.3% less likely to be obese
In Senegal, 11.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.2% of people as of 2024.
have 22.9% more doctors per person
Senegal has 1.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Sierra Leone has 1.3 as of 2022.
be 4.7 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Senegal, 0.3% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 1.4% of people as of 2024.
live 7.0 years less
In Senegal, the average life expectancy is 69 years (67 years for men, 71 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 22.7% less spent on your healthcare
Senegal spends $206 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sierra Leone spends $159 as of 2023.
have 18.0% less access to essential health services
Senegal scores 50 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sierra Leone scores 41 as of 2021.
Economy
be 15.4% more likely to be unemployed
In Senegal, 2.7% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sierra Leone, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.
be 51.5% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Senegal, 37.5% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, however, that number is 56.8% as of 2018.
make 56.7% less money
Senegal has a GDP per capita of $1,955 as of 2025, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.
Life
be 49.4% more likely to die during childbirth
In Senegal, approximately 237.0 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 88.9% more likely to die during infancy
In Senegal, approximately 28.9 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 52.2% less likely to have access to electricity
In Senegal, approximately 74% of people have electricity access (96% in urban areas, and 56% 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 58.3% less likely to have internet access
In Senegal, approximately 60.1% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.
be 22.7% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Senegal, approximately 88% of people have access to drinking water (95% in urban areas, and 81% 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 57.5% less on education
Senegal spends 6.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Geography
see 24.3% less coastline
Senegal has a total of 531 km of coastline. In Sierra Leone, that number is 402 km.
Safety
be 33.7% less likely to die in a road accident
In Senegal, road accidents kill 20.8 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, they kill 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 96.9% less strain on fresh water
Senegal withdraws 16% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sierra Leone withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 77.9% less CO2
Senegal emits 0.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 49.2% more likely to die from air pollution
In Senegal, air pollution causes 65.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, it causes 97.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2018–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Senegal vs. Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: At a glance
How big is Sierra Leone compared to Senegal? See an in-depth size comparison.