Quality of life comparison
If you lived in South Korea instead of Sierra Leone, you would:
Health
live 21.7 years longer
In Sierra Leone, the average life expectancy is 62 years (60 years for men, 64 years for women) as of 2024. In South Korea, that number is 84 years (81 years for men, 87 years for women) as of 2024.
see 32.0 times more spent on your healthcare
Sierra Leone spends $159 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). South Korea spends $5,081 as of 2024.
have 19.5 times more doctors per person
Sierra Leone has 1.3 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. South Korea has 26.1 as of 2022.
have 2.2 times more access to essential health services
Sierra Leone scores 41 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. South Korea scores 89 as of 2021.
be 4.5 times more likely to die by suicide
Sierra Leone has a suicide rate of 6.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In South Korea, it is 27.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 14.9% less likely to be unemployed
In Sierra Leone, 3.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In South Korea, that number is 2.7% as of 2025.
be 74.6% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Sierra Leone, 56.8% live below the poverty line as of 2018. In South Korea, however, that number is 14.4% as of 2016.
make 42.8 times more money
Sierra Leone has a GDP per capita of $846 as of 2025, while in South Korea, the GDP per capita is $36,227 as of 2025.
Life
be 98.9% 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 South Korea, 4.0 women do as of 2023.
be 2.0 times more likely to be literate
In Sierra Leone, the literacy rate is 48.6% as of 2022. In South Korea, it is 98.0% as of 2019.
be 95.8% 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 South Korea, on the other hand, 2.3 children do as of 2024.
have 84.4% fewer children
In Sierra Leone, there are approximately 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In South Korea, there are 4.7 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 South Korea, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 3.9 times more likely to have internet access
In Sierra Leone, approximately 25.1% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In South Korea, about 97.9% do as of 2024.
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 South Korea, 100% of people do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 2.1 times more on education
Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. South Korea spends 5.4% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 83.9% more on healthcare
Sierra Leone spends 4.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In South Korea, that number is 8.7% of GDP as of 2024.
Geography
see 6.0 times more coastline
Sierra Leone has a total of 402 km of coastline. In South Korea, that number is 2,413 km.
Safety
be 78.4% less likely to be murdered
Sierra Leone has a homicide rate of 2.2 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In South Korea, that number is 0.5 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 50.0% less likely to die in a road accident
In Sierra Leone, road accidents kill 13.8 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In South Korea, they kill 6.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 170.4 times more strain on fresh water
Sierra Leone withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. South Korea withdraws 85% 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 South Korea, it causes 19.0 as of 2019.
emit 66.8 times more CO2
Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. South Korea emits 11.4 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2018–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2016–2022). How we calculate this
Compare further: Sierra Leone vs. South Korea
South Korea: At a glance
How big is South Korea compared to Sierra Leone? See an in-depth size comparison.