Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Puerto Rico instead of Sierra Leone, you would:
Health
live 19.9 years longer
In Sierra Leone, the average life expectancy is 62 years (60 years for men, 64 years for women) as of 2024. In Puerto Rico, that number is 82 years (78 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024.
be 11.7% less likely to die by suicide
Sierra Leone has a suicide rate of 6.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Puerto Rico, it is 5.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 5.2 times more likely to be obese
In Sierra Leone, 8.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Puerto Rico, that number is 42.4% of people as of 2024.
Economy
make 48.0 times more money
Sierra Leone has a GDP per capita of $846 as of 2025, while in Puerto Rico, the GDP per capita is $40,620 as of 2025.
be 90.2% more likely to be unemployed
In Sierra Leone, 3.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Puerto Rico, that number is 6.0% as of 2025.
Life
be 96.9% 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 Puerto Rico, 11.0 women do as of 2023.
be 90.1% more likely to be literate
In Sierra Leone, the literacy rate is 48.6% as of 2022. In Puerto Rico, it is 92.4% as of 2021.
be 88.9% 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 Puerto Rico, on the other hand, 6.0 children do as of 2022.
have 81.1% fewer children
In Sierra Leone, there are approximately 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Puerto Rico, there are 5.7 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 Puerto Rico, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 3.5 times more likely to have internet access
In Sierra Leone, approximately 25.1% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Puerto Rico, about 87.3% do as of 2022.
be 46.9% more likely to have access to drinking water
In Sierra Leone, approximately 68% of people have access to drinking water as of 2024. In Puerto Rico, 100% of people do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 63.0% more on education
Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Puerto Rico spends 4.3% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
Geography
see 24.6% more coastline
Sierra Leone has a total of 402 km of coastline. In Puerto Rico, that number is 501 km.
Safety
be 6.6 times more likely to be murdered
Sierra Leone has a homicide rate of 2.2 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In Puerto Rico, that number is 14.6 per 100,000 as of 2023.
Infrastructure
live with 39.1 times more strain on fresh water
Sierra Leone withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Puerto Rico withdraws 20% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 28.4 times more CO2
Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Puerto Rico emits 4.8 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), The World Factbook (2021–2022), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Sierra Leone vs. Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico: At a glance
How big is Puerto Rico compared to Sierra Leone? See an in-depth size comparison.