Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Nigeria instead of Sri Lanka, you would:
Health
be 66.1% less likely to die by suicide
Sri Lanka has a suicide rate of 14.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Nigeria, it is 5.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 12.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Sri Lanka, 0.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Nigeria, that number is 1.2% of people as of 2024.
live 23.0 years less
In Sri Lanka, the average life expectancy is 78 years (74 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024. In Nigeria, that number is 55 years (54 years for men, 55 years for women) as of 2024.
be 21.8% more likely to be obese
In Sri Lanka, 11.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Nigeria, that number is 13.7% of people as of 2024.
see 48.7% less spent on your healthcare
Sri Lanka spends $507 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Nigeria spends $260 as of 2023.
have 66.5% fewer doctors per person
Sri Lanka has 11.4 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Nigeria has 3.8 as of 2023.
have 43.3% less access to essential health services
Sri Lanka scores 67 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Nigeria scores 38 as of 2021.
Economy
be 23.5% less likely to be unemployed
In Sri Lanka, 4.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Nigeria, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.
be 3.9 times more likely to live below the poverty line
In Sri Lanka, 14.3% live below the poverty line as of 2019. In Nigeria, however, that number is 56.2% as of 2022.
make 75.5% less money
Sri Lanka has a GDP per capita of $5,002 as of 2025, while in Nigeria, the GDP per capita is $1,224 as of 2025.
Life
have 3.2 times more children
In Sri Lanka, there are approximately 10.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Nigeria, there are 32.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 55.2 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Sri Lanka, approximately 18.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Nigeria, 993.0 women do as of 2023.
be 24.1% less likely to be literate
In Sri Lanka, the literacy rate is 92.7% as of 2024. In Nigeria, it is 70.4% as of 2024.
be 13.4 times more likely to die during infancy
In Sri Lanka, approximately 5.2 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Nigeria, on the other hand, 69.8 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 38.8% less likely to have access to electricity
In Sri Lanka, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Nigeria, that number is 61% of people on average (85% in urban areas, and 33% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 24.5% less likely to have internet access
In Sri Lanka, approximately 54.6% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Nigeria, about 41.2% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 82.5% less on education
Sri Lanka spends 1.8% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Nigeria spends 0.3% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 13.9% more on healthcare
Sri Lanka spends 3.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Nigeria, that number is 4.2% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 36.3% less coastline
Sri Lanka has a total of 1,340 km of coastline. In Nigeria, that number is 853 km.
Safety
be 49.6% more likely to die in a road accident
In Sri Lanka, road accidents kill 11.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Nigeria, they kill 17.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 89.3% less strain on fresh water
Sri Lanka withdraws 91% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Nigeria withdraws 10% as of 2022.
find 99.1% less home broadband
Sri Lanka has 8.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Nigeria has 0.1 as of 2024.
use 77.6% less electricity
Sri Lanka uses 644 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Nigeria uses 144 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
emit 46.2% less CO2
Sri Lanka emits 1.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Nigeria emits 0.6 tonnes as of 2024.
be 2.1 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Sri Lanka, air pollution causes 37.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Nigeria, it causes 77.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2019–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Sri Lanka vs. Nigeria
Nigeria: At a glance
How big is Nigeria compared to Sri Lanka? See an in-depth size comparison.