Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of Swaziland, you would:
Health
be 94.0% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Swaziland, 23.4% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 1.4% of people as of 2024.
be 72.3% less likely to be obese
In Swaziland, 29.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.2% of people as of 2024.
be 77.5% less likely to die by suicide
Swaziland has a suicide rate of 27.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 2.3 years less
In Swaziland, the average life expectancy is 64 years (61 years for men, 67 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.
see 82.8% less spent on your healthcare
Swaziland spends $922 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sierra Leone spends $159 as of 2023.
have 75.9% fewer doctors per person
Swaziland has 5.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Sierra Leone has 1.3 as of 2022.
have 26.8% less access to essential health services
Swaziland scores 56 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sierra Leone scores 41 as of 2021.
Economy
be 90.8% less likely to be unemployed
In Swaziland, 34.2% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sierra Leone, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.
make 79.4% less money
Swaziland has a GDP per capita of $4,108 as of 2025, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.
Life
have 27.3% more children
In Swaziland, there are approximately 23.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, there are 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 3.0 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Swaziland, approximately 118.0 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 46.4% less likely to be literate
In Swaziland, the literacy rate is 90.8% as of 2022. In Sierra Leone, it is 48.6% as of 2022.
be 29.4% more likely to die during infancy
In Swaziland, approximately 42.2 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.
Basic Needs
be 58.9% less likely to have access to electricity
In Swaziland, approximately 86% of people have electricity access (91% in urban areas, and 85% 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 60.4% less likely to have internet access
In Swaziland, approximately 63.4% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.
be 15.3% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Swaziland, approximately 80% of people have access to drinking water (98% in urban areas, and 74% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 68% of people on average (82% in urban areas, and 57% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 56.6% less on education
Swaziland spends 6.0% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 37.1% less on healthcare
Swaziland spends 7.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 4.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 82.3% less likely to be murdered
Swaziland has a homicide rate of 12.5 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, that number is 2.2 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 44.1% less likely to die in a road accident
In Swaziland, road accidents kill 24.7 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, they kill 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 99.4% less strain on fresh water
Swaziland withdraws 78% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sierra Leone withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 80.7% less CO2
Swaziland emits 0.9 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 47.0% more likely to die from air pollution
In Swaziland, air pollution causes 66.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, it causes 97.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2022). How we calculate this
Compare further: Swaziland vs. Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: At a glance
How big is Sierra Leone compared to Swaziland? See an in-depth size comparison.