Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Rwanda instead of Sierra Leone, you would:
Health
live 6.1 years longer
In Sierra Leone, the average life expectancy is 62 years (60 years for men, 64 years for women) as of 2024. In Rwanda, that number is 68 years (66 years for men, 70 years for women) as of 2024.
be 31.9% less likely to be obese
In Sierra Leone, 8.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Rwanda, that number is 5.6% of people as of 2024.
see 11.4% more spent on your healthcare
Sierra Leone spends $159 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Rwanda spends $177 as of 2023.
have 19.5% more access to essential health services
Sierra Leone scores 41 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Rwanda scores 49 as of 2021.
be 42.9% more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Sierra Leone, 1.4% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Rwanda, that number is 2.0% of people as of 2024.
have 32.8% fewer doctors per person
Sierra Leone has 1.3 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Rwanda has 0.9 as of 2022.
be 41.4% more likely to die by suicide
Sierra Leone has a suicide rate of 6.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Rwanda, it is 8.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
make 32.8% more money
Sierra Leone has a GDP per capita of $846 as of 2025, while in Rwanda, the GDP per capita is $1,124 as of 2025.
be 3.6 times more likely to be unemployed
In Sierra Leone, 3.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Rwanda, that number is 11.4% as of 2025.
Life
be 35.3% 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 Rwanda, 229.0 women do as of 2023.
be 62.1% more likely to be literate
In Sierra Leone, the literacy rate is 48.6% as of 2022. In Rwanda, it is 78.8% as of 2022.
be 46.2% 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 Rwanda, on the other hand, 29.4 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 80.0% 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 Rwanda, that number is 64% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 58% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 26.3% more likely to have internet access
In Sierra Leone, approximately 25.1% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Rwanda, about 31.7% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 76.0% more on education
Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Rwanda spends 4.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
Safety
be 15.9% less likely to die in a road accident
In Sierra Leone, road accidents kill 13.8 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Rwanda, they kill 11.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 62.6% more likely to be murdered
Sierra Leone has a homicide rate of 2.2 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In Rwanda, that number is 3.6 per 100,000 as of 2020.
Infrastructure
live with 40.4 times more strain on fresh water
Sierra Leone withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Rwanda withdraws 20% 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 Rwanda, it causes 62.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2022). How we calculate this
Compare further: Sierra Leone vs. Rwanda
Rwanda: At a glance
How big is Rwanda compared to Sierra Leone? See an in-depth size comparison.