Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Malawi instead of Tanzania, you would:
Health
be 30.5% less likely to be obese
In Tanzania, 11.5% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Malawi, that number is 8.0% of people as of 2024.
have 11.6% more access to essential health services
Tanzania scores 43 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Malawi scores 48 as of 2021.
be 77.1% more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Tanzania, 3.5% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Malawi, that number is 6.2% of people as of 2024.
have 59.7% fewer doctors per person
Tanzania has 1.3 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Malawi has 0.5 as of 2022.
be 48.4% more likely to die by suicide
Tanzania has a suicide rate of 5.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Malawi, it is 7.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 3.2 times more likely to be unemployed
In Tanzania, 1.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Malawi, that number is 5.1% as of 2025.
make 49.1% less money
Tanzania has a GDP per capita of $1,319 as of 2025, while in Malawi, the GDP per capita is $672 as of 2025.
Life
be 18.5% less likely to die during childbirth
In Tanzania, approximately 276.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Malawi, 225.0 women do as of 2023.
be 13.9% less likely to be literate
In Tanzania, the literacy rate is 78.2% as of 2022. In Malawi, it is 67.3% as of 2021.
be 32.4% more likely to die during infancy
In Tanzania, approximately 28.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Malawi, on the other hand, 38.0 children do as of 2024.
have 10.5% fewer children
In Tanzania, there are approximately 34.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Malawi, there are 31.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 13.1% more likely to have access to drinking water
In Tanzania, approximately 65% of people have access to drinking water (86% in urban areas, and 51% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Malawi, that number is 73% of people on average (86% in urban areas, and 70% in rural areas) as of 2024.
be 67.7% less likely to have access to electricity
In Tanzania, approximately 48% of people have electricity access (82% in urban areas, and 28% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Malawi, that number is 16% of people on average (58% in urban areas, and 6% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 39.2% less likely to have internet access
In Tanzania, approximately 31.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Malawi, about 19.0% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 13.0% less on education
Tanzania spends 3.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Malawi spends 2.8% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 2.1 times more on healthcare
Tanzania spends 3.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Malawi, that number is 6.5% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 27.8% more likely to die in a road accident
In Tanzania, road accidents kill 15.8 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Malawi, they kill 20.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 64.0% less home broadband
Tanzania has 0.2 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Malawi has 0.1 as of 2024.
live with 35.0% more strain on fresh water
Tanzania withdraws 13% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Malawi withdraws 18% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 29.0% less CO2
Tanzania emits 0.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Malawi emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 19.4% more likely to die from air pollution
In Tanzania, air pollution causes 36.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Malawi, it causes 43.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2021). How we calculate this
Compare further: Tanzania vs. Malawi
Malawi: At a glance
How big is Malawi compared to Tanzania? See an in-depth size comparison.