Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Madagascar instead of Sweden, you would:
Health
be 74.2% less likely to be obese
In Sweden, 17.5% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Madagascar, that number is 4.5% of people as of 2024.
be 56.0% less likely to die by suicide
Sweden has a suicide rate of 13.8 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Madagascar, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 20.2 years less
In Sweden, the average life expectancy is 84 years (83 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2024. In Madagascar, that number is 64 years (62 years for men, 66 years for women) as of 2024.
see 99.2% less spent on your healthcare
Sweden spends $7,770 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Madagascar spends $63 as of 2023.
have 96.1% fewer doctors per person
Sweden has 44.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2021. Madagascar has 1.7 as of 2022.
have 58.8% less access to essential health services
Sweden scores 85 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Madagascar scores 35 as of 2021.
Economy
be 65.0% less likely to be unemployed
In Sweden, 8.7% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Madagascar, that number is 3.0% as of 2025.
be 4.7 times more likely to live below the poverty line
In Sweden, 16.1% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Madagascar, however, that number is 75.2% as of 2021.
make 99.1% less money
Sweden has a GDP per capita of $63,133 as of 2025, while in Madagascar, the GDP per capita is $599 as of 2025.
Life
have 3.4 times more children
In Sweden, there are approximately 9.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Madagascar, there are 31.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 111.2 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Sweden, approximately 4.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Madagascar, 445.0 women do as of 2023.
be 21.5 times more likely to die during infancy
In Sweden, approximately 2.0 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Madagascar, on the other hand, 43.0 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 60.6% less likely to have access to electricity
In Sweden, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Madagascar, that number is 39% of people on average (76% in urban areas, and 15% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 80.5% less likely to have internet access
In Sweden, approximately 95.8% of the population has internet access as of 2025. In Madagascar, about 18.7% do as of 2024.
be 44.5% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Sweden, approximately 100% of people have access to drinking water (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Madagascar, that number is 55% of people on average (78% in urban areas, and 39% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 58.3% less on education
Sweden spends 7.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Madagascar spends 3.0% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 69.4% less on healthcare
Sweden spends 11.2% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2024. In Madagascar, that number is 3.4% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 50.0% more coastline
Sweden has a total of 3,218 km of coastline. In Madagascar, that number is 4,828 km.
Safety
be 10.7 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Sweden, road accidents kill 2.1 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Madagascar, they kill 22.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 99.7% less home broadband
Sweden has 40.6 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Madagascar has 0.1 as of 2023.
live with 3.1 times more strain on fresh water
Sweden withdraws 4% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Madagascar withdraws 11% as of 2022.
use 99.3% less electricity
Sweden uses 12,226 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Madagascar uses 80 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
emit 95.8% less CO2
Sweden emits 3.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Madagascar emits 0.1 tonnes as of 2024.
be 7.2 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Sweden, air pollution causes 8.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Madagascar, it causes 58.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Sweden vs. Madagascar
Madagascar: At a glance
How big is Madagascar compared to Sweden? See an in-depth size comparison.