Quality of life comparison
If you lived in United Kingdom instead of Sierra Leone, you would:
Health
be 85.7% 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 Kingdom, that number is 0.2% of people as of 2023.
live 19.4 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 Kingdom, that number is 81 years (80 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2024.
see 41.6 times more spent on your healthcare
Sierra Leone spends $159 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). United Kingdom spends $6,606 as of 2024.
have 24.6 times more doctors per person
Sierra Leone has 1.3 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. United Kingdom has 33.0 as of 2023.
have 2.1 times more access to essential health services
Sierra Leone scores 41 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. United Kingdom scores 88 as of 2021.
be 3.3 times more likely to be obese
In Sierra Leone, 8.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In United Kingdom, that number is 27.4% of people as of 2024.
be 55.5% more likely to die by suicide
Sierra Leone has a suicide rate of 6.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In United Kingdom, it is 9.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 67.3% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Sierra Leone, 56.8% live below the poverty line as of 2018. In United Kingdom, however, that number is 18.6% as of 2017.
make 68.1 times more money
Sierra Leone has a GDP per capita of $846 as of 2025, while in United Kingdom, the GDP per capita is $57,602 as of 2025.
be 50.8% more likely to be unemployed
In Sierra Leone, 3.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In United Kingdom, that number is 4.8% as of 2025.
Life
be 97.7% 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 Kingdom, 8.0 women do as of 2023.
be 92.5% 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 Kingdom, on the other hand, 4.1 children do as of 2024.
have 67.2% fewer children
In Sierra Leone, there are approximately 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In United Kingdom, there are 9.9 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 Kingdom, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 3.8 times more likely to have internet access
In Sierra Leone, approximately 25.1% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In United Kingdom, about 95.5% 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 Kingdom, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 2.3 times more on education
Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. United Kingdom spends 5.9% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
spend 2.4 times more on healthcare
Sierra Leone spends 4.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In United Kingdom, that number is 11.1% of GDP as of 2024.
Geography
see 30.9 times more coastline
Sierra Leone has a total of 402 km of coastline. In United Kingdom, that number is 12,429 km.
Safety
be 49.5% less likely to be murdered
Sierra Leone has a homicide rate of 2.2 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In United Kingdom, that number is 1.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 82.6% 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 Kingdom, they kill 2.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 28.7 times more strain on fresh water
Sierra Leone withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. United Kingdom withdraws 14% as of 2022.
Environment
be 86.6% 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 Kingdom, it causes 13.0 as of 2019.
emit 24.8 times more CO2
Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. United Kingdom emits 4.2 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2017–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Sierra Leone vs. United Kingdom
United Kingdom: At a glance
How big is United Kingdom compared to Sierra Leone? See an in-depth size comparison.