Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Guinea-Bissau instead of Somalia, you would:
Health
live 5.3 years longer
In Somalia, the average life expectancy is 59 years (56 years for men, 62 years for women) as of 2024. In Guinea-Bissau, that number is 64 years (62 years for men, 67 years for women) as of 2024.
be 14.8% less likely to be obese
In Somalia, 14.9% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Guinea-Bissau, that number is 12.7% of people as of 2024.
see 4.7 times more spent on your healthcare
Somalia spends $52 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Guinea-Bissau spends $247 as of 2023.
have 37.0% more access to essential health services
Somalia scores 27 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Guinea-Bissau scores 37 as of 2021.
be 22.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Somalia, 0.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Guinea-Bissau, that number is 2.2% of people as of 2024.
Economy
be 85.9% less likely to be unemployed
In Somalia, 18.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Guinea-Bissau, that number is 2.7% as of 2025.
make 70.0% more money
Somalia has a GDP per capita of $661 as of 2025, while in Guinea-Bissau, the GDP per capita is $1,124 as of 2025.
Life
be 18.1% more likely to be literate
In Somalia, the literacy rate is 54.1% as of 2022. In Guinea-Bissau, it is 63.9% as of 2022.
be 35.6% less likely to die during infancy
In Somalia, approximately 65.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Guinea-Bissau, on the other hand, 42.1 children do as of 2024.
have 30.2% fewer children
In Somalia, there are approximately 42.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Guinea-Bissau, there are 29.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 19.5% less likely to have access to electricity
In Somalia, approximately 50% of people have electricity access (79% in urban areas, and 24% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Guinea-Bissau, that number is 40% of people on average (64% in urban areas, and 21% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 17.9% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Somalia, approximately 75% of people have access to drinking water (84% in urban areas, and 68% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Guinea-Bissau, that number is 62% of people on average (73% in urban areas, and 53% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 2.4 times more on healthcare
Somalia spends 3.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Guinea-Bissau, that number is 8.8% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 88.4% less coastline
Somalia has a total of 3,025 km of coastline. In Guinea-Bissau, that number is 350 km.
Safety
be 51.0% more likely to die in a road accident
In Somalia, road accidents kill 20.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Guinea-Bissau, they kill 30.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 93.9% less strain on fresh water
Somalia withdraws 25% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Guinea-Bissau withdraws 2% as of 2022.
find 45.8% less home broadband
Somalia has 0.7 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. Guinea-Bissau has 0.4 as of 2024.
Environment
be 39.1% more likely to die from air pollution
In Somalia, air pollution causes 64.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Guinea-Bissau, it causes 89.0 as of 2019.
emit 3.2 times more CO2
Somalia emits 0.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Guinea-Bissau emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Somalia vs. Guinea-Bissau
Guinea-Bissau: At a glance
How big is Guinea-Bissau compared to Somalia? See an in-depth size comparison.