Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Barbados instead of Sierra Leone, you would:
Health
be 28.6% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Sierra Leone, 1.4% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Barbados, that number is 1.0% of people as of 2024.
live 14.4 years longer
In Sierra Leone, the average life expectancy is 62 years (60 years for men, 64 years for women) as of 2024. In Barbados, that number is 76 years (74 years for men, 79 years for women) as of 2024.
see 7.3 times more spent on your healthcare
Sierra Leone spends $159 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Barbados spends $1,153 as of 2023.
have 22.1 times more doctors per person
Sierra Leone has 1.3 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Barbados has 29.6 as of 2022.
have 87.8% more access to essential health services
Sierra Leone scores 41 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Barbados scores 77 as of 2021.
be 43.0% less likely to die by suicide
Sierra Leone has a suicide rate of 6.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Barbados, it is 3.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 4.8 times more likely to be obese
In Sierra Leone, 8.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Barbados, that number is 39.4% of people as of 2024.
Economy
be 54.8% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Sierra Leone, 56.8% live below the poverty line as of 2018. In Barbados, however, that number is 25.7% as of 2016.
make 33.5 times more money
Sierra Leone has a GDP per capita of $846 as of 2025, while in Barbados, the GDP per capita is $28,365 as of 2025.
be 2.1 times more likely to be unemployed
In Sierra Leone, 3.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Barbados, that number is 6.5% as of 2025.
Life
be 90.1% less likely to die during childbirth
In Sierra Leone, approximately 354.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Barbados, 35.0 women do as of 2023.
be 83.3% less likely to die during infancy
In Sierra Leone, approximately 54.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Barbados, on the other hand, 9.1 children do as of 2024.
have 63.1% fewer children
In Sierra Leone, there are approximately 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Barbados, there are 11.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 2.8 times more likely to have access to electricity
In Sierra Leone, approximately 36% of people have electricity access (56% in urban areas, and 19% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Barbados, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 2.8 times more likely to have internet access
In Sierra Leone, approximately 25.1% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Barbados, about 70.4% do as of 2024.
be 45.7% more likely to have access to drinking water
In Sierra Leone, approximately 68% of people have access to drinking water as of 2024. In Barbados, 99% of people do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 35.9% more on education
Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Barbados spends 3.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
spend 14.4% more on healthcare
Sierra Leone spends 4.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Barbados, that number is 5.4% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 75.9% less coastline
Sierra Leone has a total of 402 km of coastline. In Barbados, that number is 97 km.
Safety
be 27.5% less likely to die in a road accident
In Sierra Leone, road accidents kill 13.8 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Barbados, they kill 10.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 3.4 times more likely to be murdered
Sierra Leone has a homicide rate of 2.2 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In Barbados, that number is 7.4 per 100,000 as of 2023.
Infrastructure
live with 175.0 times more strain on fresh water
Sierra Leone withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Barbados withdraws 88% as of 2022.
Environment
be 80.4% less likely to die from air pollution
In Sierra Leone, air pollution causes 97.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Barbados, it causes 19.0 as of 2019.
emit 14.8 times more CO2
Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Barbados emits 2.5 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2016–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Sierra Leone vs. Barbados
Barbados: At a glance
How big is Barbados compared to Sierra Leone? See an in-depth size comparison.