Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Mauritania instead of Sierra Leone, you would:
Health
be 92.9% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Sierra Leone, 1.4% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 0.1% of people as of 2024.
live 6.7 years longer
In Sierra Leone, the average life expectancy is 62 years (60 years for men, 64 years for women) as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 69 years (67 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024.
see 89.9% more spent on your healthcare
Sierra Leone spends $159 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Mauritania spends $302 as of 2023.
have 94.8% more doctors per person
Sierra Leone has 1.3 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Mauritania has 2.6 as of 2022.
be 55.9% less likely to die by suicide
Sierra Leone has a suicide rate of 6.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Mauritania, it is 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 2.9 times more likely to be obese
In Sierra Leone, 8.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 24.1% of people as of 2024.
Economy
be 44.0% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Sierra Leone, 56.8% live below the poverty line as of 2018. In Mauritania, however, that number is 31.8% as of 2019.
make 2.6 times more money
Sierra Leone has a GDP per capita of $846 as of 2025, while in Mauritania, the GDP per capita is $2,198 as of 2025.
be 3.3 times more likely to be unemployed
In Sierra Leone, 3.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Mauritania, that number is 10.3% as of 2025.
Life
be 37.9% more likely to be literate
In Sierra Leone, the literacy rate is 48.6% as of 2022. In Mauritania, it is 67.0% as of 2021.
be 44.7% 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 Mauritania, on the other hand, 30.2 children do as of 2024.
have 13.0% more children
In Sierra Leone, there are approximately 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Mauritania, there are 34.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 41.7% 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 Mauritania, that number is 50% of people on average (94% in urban areas, and 1% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 82.4% more likely to have internet access
In Sierra Leone, approximately 25.1% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Mauritania, about 45.8% do as of 2024.
be 13.5% more likely to have access to drinking water
In Sierra Leone, approximately 68% of people have access to drinking water (82% in urban areas, and 57% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 77% of people on average (90% in urban areas, and 59% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 2.9 times more on education
Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Mauritania spends 7.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
Geography
see 87.6% more coastline
Sierra Leone has a total of 402 km of coastline. In Mauritania, that number is 754 km.
Safety
be 55.0% less likely to be murdered
Sierra Leone has a homicide rate of 2.2 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In Mauritania, that number is 1.0 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 31.2% less likely to die in a road accident
In Sierra Leone, road accidents kill 13.8 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Mauritania, they kill 9.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 26.5 times more strain on fresh water
Sierra Leone withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Mauritania withdraws 13% as of 2022.
Environment
be 36.1% less likely to die from air pollution
In Sierra Leone, air pollution causes 97.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Mauritania, it causes 62.0 as of 2019.
emit 5.7 times more CO2
Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Mauritania emits 1.0 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2018–2025), The World Factbook (2021–2022), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Sierra Leone vs. Mauritania
Mauritania: At a glance
How big is Mauritania compared to Sierra Leone? See an in-depth size comparison.