Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sri Lanka instead of Tonga, you would:
Health
live 4.6 years longer
In Tonga, the average life expectancy is 73 years (70 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, that number is 78 years (74 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.
be 84.8% less likely to be obese
In Tonga, 73.8% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, that number is 11.2% of people as of 2024.
have 12.0% more doctors per person
Tonga has 10.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2021. Sri Lanka has 11.4 as of 2023.
have 17.5% more access to essential health services
Tonga scores 57 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sri Lanka scores 67 as of 2021.
be 3.1 times more likely to die by suicide
Tonga has a suicide rate of 4.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sri Lanka, it is 14.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 30.6% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Tonga, 20.6% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Sri Lanka, however, that number is 14.3% as of 2019.
be 99.0% more likely to be unemployed
In Tonga, 2.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sri Lanka, that number is 4.0% as of 2025.
make 23.6% less money
Tonga has a GDP per capita of $6,547 as of 2025, while in Sri Lanka, the GDP per capita is $5,002 as of 2025.
Life
be 73.1% less likely to die during childbirth
In Tonga, approximately 67.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Sri Lanka, 18.0 women do as of 2023.
be 33.3% less likely to die during infancy
In Tonga, approximately 7.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, on the other hand, 5.2 children do as of 2024.
have 56.2% fewer children
In Tonga, there are approximately 23.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, there are 10.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 19.1% less likely to have internet access
In Tonga, approximately 67.4% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sri Lanka, about 54.6% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 65.5% less on education
Tonga spends 5.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Sri Lanka spends 1.8% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 50.0% less on healthcare
Tonga spends 7.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Sri Lanka, that number is 3.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 3.2 times more coastline
Tonga has a total of 419 km of coastline. In Sri Lanka, that number is 1,340 km.
Safety
be 3.5 times more likely to be murdered
Tonga has a homicide rate of 0.9 per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sri Lanka, that number is 3.3 per 100,000 as of 2019.
be 35.3% more likely to die in a road accident
In Tonga, road accidents kill 8.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sri Lanka, they kill 11.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Environment
emit 35.0% less CO2
Tonga emits 1.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sri Lanka emits 1.1 tonnes as of 2024.
be 54.2% more likely to die from air pollution
In Tonga, air pollution causes 24.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sri Lanka, it causes 37.0 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: Tonga vs. Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: At a glance
How big is Sri Lanka compared to Tonga? See an in-depth size comparison.