Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of Somalia, you would:
Health
live 3.0 years longer
In Somalia, the average life expectancy is 59 years (56 years for men, 62 years for women) as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 62 years (60 years for men, 64 years for women) as of 2024.
be 45.1% less likely to be obese
In Somalia, 14.9% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.2% of people as of 2024.
see 3.1 times more spent on your healthcare
Somalia spends $52 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sierra Leone spends $159 as of 2023.
have 51.9% more access to essential health services
Somalia scores 27 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sierra Leone scores 41 as of 2021.
be 22.9% less likely to die by suicide
Somalia has a suicide rate of 8.0 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 14.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Somalia, 0.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 1.4% of people as of 2024.
Economy
be 83.4% less likely to be unemployed
In Somalia, 18.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sierra Leone, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.
make 28.0% more money
Somalia has a GDP per capita of $661 as of 2025, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.
Life
be 37.1% less likely to die during childbirth
In Somalia, approximately 563.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, 354.0 women do as of 2023.
be 16.5% 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 Sierra Leone, on the other hand, 54.6 children do as of 2024.
be 10.2% less likely to be literate
In Somalia, the literacy rate is 54.1% as of 2022. In Sierra Leone, it is 48.6% as of 2022.
have 28.9% fewer children
In Somalia, there are approximately 42.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, there are 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 29.4% 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 Sierra Leone, that number is 36% of people on average (56% in urban areas, and 19% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 10.2% less likely to have internet access
In Somalia, approximately 27.9% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 26.2% more on healthcare
Somalia spends 3.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 4.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 86.7% less coastline
Somalia has a total of 3,025 km of coastline. In Sierra Leone, that number is 402 km.
Safety
be 31.7% less likely to die in a road accident
In Somalia, road accidents kill 20.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, they kill 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 98.0% less strain on fresh water
Somalia withdraws 25% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sierra Leone withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
be 51.6% more likely to die from air pollution
In Somalia, air pollution causes 64.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, it causes 97.0 as of 2019.
emit 3.4 times more CO2
Somalia emits 0.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2022), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Somalia vs. Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: At a glance
How big is Sierra Leone compared to Somalia? See an in-depth size comparison.