Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Democratic Republic of the Congo instead of Timor-Leste, you would:
Health
live 5.8 years less
In Timor-Leste, the average life expectancy is 68 years (66 years for men, 70 years for women) as of 2024. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, that number is 62 years (60 years for men, 64 years for women) as of 2024.
be 85.3% more likely to be obese
In Timor-Leste, 3.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, that number is 6.7% of people as of 2024.
see 87.5% less spent on your healthcare
Timor-Leste spends $461 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Democratic Republic of the Congo spends $58 as of 2023.
have 72.3% fewer doctors per person
Timor-Leste has 7.5 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2020. Democratic Republic of the Congo has 2.1 as of 2022.
have 19.2% less access to essential health services
Timor-Leste scores 52 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Democratic Republic of the Congo scores 42 as of 2021.
be 2.5 times more likely to die by suicide
Timor-Leste has a suicide rate of 3.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, it is 8.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 2.8 times more likely to be unemployed
In Timor-Leste, 1.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, that number is 4.4% as of 2025.
make 39.8% less money
Timor-Leste has a GDP per capita of $1,341 as of 2025, while in Democratic Republic of the Congo, the GDP per capita is $807 as of 2025.
Life
have 87.8% more children
In Timor-Leste, there are approximately 21.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, there are 40.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 2.2 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Timor-Leste, approximately 192.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, 427.0 women do as of 2023.
be 63.0% more likely to die during infancy
In Timor-Leste, approximately 34.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the other hand, 56.4 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 77.9% less likely to have access to electricity
In Timor-Leste, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, that number is 22% of people on average (56% in urban areas, and 1% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 51.7% less likely to have internet access
In Timor-Leste, approximately 40.8% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, about 19.7% do as of 2024.
be 59.1% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Timor-Leste, approximately 87% of people have access to drinking water (98% in urban areas, and 82% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, that number is 36% of people on average (59% in urban areas, and 14% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 45.8% less on education
Timor-Leste spends 5.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Democratic Republic of the Congo spends 2.8% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 61.7% less on healthcare
Timor-Leste spends 9.6% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, that number is 3.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 94.8% less coastline
Timor-Leste has a total of 706 km of coastline. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, that number is 37 km.
Safety
be 35.8% more likely to die in a road accident
In Timor-Leste, road accidents kill 12.0 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, they kill 16.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 3.0 times more home broadband
Timor-Leste has 0.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Democratic Republic of the Congo has 0.0 as of 2024.
live with 99.2% less strain on fresh water
Timor-Leste withdraws 28% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Democratic Republic of the Congo withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 88.0% less CO2
Timor-Leste emits 0.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Democratic Republic of the Congo emits 0.1 tonnes as of 2024.
be 18.0% more likely to die from air pollution
In Timor-Leste, air pollution causes 61.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Democratic Republic of the Congo, it causes 72.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2022), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Timor-Leste vs. Democratic Republic of the Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo: At a glance
How big is Democratic Republic of the Congo compared to Timor-Leste? See an in-depth size comparison.