Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sri Lanka instead of Somalia, you would:
Health
live 18.7 years longer
In Somalia, the average life expectancy is 59 years (56 years for men, 62 years for women) as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, that number is 78 years (74 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.
be 24.7% less likely to be obese
In Somalia, 14.9% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, that number is 11.2% of people as of 2024.
see 9.7 times more spent on your healthcare
Somalia spends $52 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sri Lanka spends $507 as of 2023.
have 2.5 times more access to essential health services
Somalia scores 27 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sri Lanka scores 67 as of 2021.
be 85.2% more likely to die by suicide
Somalia has a suicide rate of 8.0 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sri Lanka, it is 14.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 78.9% less likely to be unemployed
In Somalia, 18.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sri Lanka, that number is 4.0% as of 2025.
be 74.2% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Somalia, 55.4% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Sri Lanka, however, that number is 14.3% as of 2019.
make 7.6 times more money
Somalia has a GDP per capita of $661 as of 2025, while in Sri Lanka, the GDP per capita is $5,002 as of 2025.
Life
be 96.8% 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 Sri Lanka, 18.0 women do as of 2023.
be 71.4% more likely to be literate
In Somalia, the literacy rate is 54.1% as of 2022. In Sri Lanka, it is 92.7% as of 2024.
be 92.0% 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 Sri Lanka, on the other hand, 5.2 children do as of 2024.
have 76.2% fewer children
In Somalia, there are approximately 42.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, there are 10.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 98.8% more 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 Sri Lanka, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 95.4% more likely to have internet access
In Somalia, approximately 27.9% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, about 54.6% do as of 2024.
be 19.8% more 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 Sri Lanka, that number is 90% of people on average (98% in urban areas, and 88% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Geography
see 55.7% less coastline
Somalia has a total of 3,025 km of coastline. In Sri Lanka, that number is 1,340 km.
Safety
be 43.1% less likely to die in a road accident
In Somalia, road accidents kill 20.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sri Lanka, they kill 11.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 11.8 times more home broadband
Somalia has 0.7 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. Sri Lanka has 8.5 as of 2024.
live with 3.7 times more strain on fresh water
Somalia withdraws 25% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sri Lanka withdraws 91% as of 2022.
Environment
be 42.2% less likely to die from air pollution
In Somalia, air pollution causes 64.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sri Lanka, it causes 37.0 as of 2019.
emit 21.2 times more CO2
Somalia emits 0.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sri Lanka emits 1.1 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2019–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Somalia vs. Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: At a glance
How big is Sri Lanka compared to Somalia? See an in-depth size comparison.