Quality of life comparison
If you lived in United Arab Emirates 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 United Arab Emirates, that number is 0.1% of people as of 2024.
live 21.1 years longer
In Sierra Leone, the average life expectancy is 62 years (60 years for men, 64 years for women) as of 2024. In United Arab Emirates, that number is 83 years (82 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024.
see 23.5 times more spent on your healthcare
Sierra Leone spends $159 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). United Arab Emirates spends $3,727 as of 2023.
have 22.3 times more doctors per person
Sierra Leone has 1.3 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. United Arab Emirates has 29.9 as of 2023.
have 100.0% more access to essential health services
Sierra Leone scores 41 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. United Arab Emirates scores 82 as of 2021.
be 72.1% less likely to die by suicide
Sierra Leone has a suicide rate of 6.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In United Arab Emirates, it is 1.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 3.9 times more likely to be obese
In Sierra Leone, 8.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In United Arab Emirates, that number is 31.6% of people as of 2024.
Economy
be 31.1% less likely to be unemployed
In Sierra Leone, 3.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In United Arab Emirates, that number is 2.2% as of 2025.
make 59.4 times more money
Sierra Leone has a GDP per capita of $846 as of 2025, while in United Arab Emirates, the GDP per capita is $50,274 as of 2024.
Life
be 99.2% 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 United Arab Emirates, 3.0 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 United Arab Emirates, it is 98.8% as of 2024.
be 93.0% 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 United Arab Emirates, on the other hand, 3.8 children do as of 2024.
have 67.4% fewer children
In Sierra Leone, there are approximately 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In United Arab Emirates, there are 9.8 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 United Arab Emirates, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 4.0 times more likely to have internet access
In Sierra Leone, approximately 25.1% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In United Arab Emirates, about 100.0% 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 (82% in urban areas, and 57% in rural areas) as of 2024. In United Arab Emirates, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 48.5% more on education
Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. United Arab Emirates spends 3.9% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
Geography
see 3.3 times more coastline
Sierra Leone has a total of 402 km of coastline. In United Arab Emirates, that number is 1,318 km.
Safety
be 68.9% less likely to be murdered
Sierra Leone has a homicide rate of 2.2 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In United Arab Emirates, that number is 0.7 per 100,000 as of 2022.
be 57.2% less likely to die in a road accident
In Sierra Leone, road accidents kill 13.8 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In United Arab Emirates, they kill 5.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 3019.9 times more strain on fresh water
Sierra Leone withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. United Arab Emirates withdraws 1510% as of 2022.
Environment
be 27.8% less likely to die from air pollution
In Sierra Leone, air pollution causes 97.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In United Arab Emirates, it causes 70.0 as of 2019.
emit 107.4 times more CO2
Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. United Arab Emirates emits 18.3 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2022), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Sierra Leone vs. United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: At a glance
How big is United Arab Emirates compared to Sierra Leone? See an in-depth size comparison.