Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of United Kingdom, you would:
Health
be 70.1% less likely to be obese
In United Kingdom, 27.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.2% of people as of 2024.
be 35.7% less likely to die by suicide
United Kingdom has a suicide rate of 9.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 7.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In United Kingdom, 0.2% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 1.4% of people as of 2024.
live 19.4 years less
In United Kingdom, the average life expectancy is 81 years (80 years for men, 83 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 97.6% less spent on your healthcare
United Kingdom spends $6,606 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sierra Leone spends $159 as of 2023.
have 95.9% fewer doctors per person
United Kingdom has 33.0 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Sierra Leone has 1.3 as of 2022.
have 53.4% less access to essential health services
United Kingdom scores 88 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sierra Leone scores 41 as of 2021.
Economy
be 33.7% less likely to be unemployed
In United Kingdom, 4.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sierra Leone, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.
be 3.1 times more likely to live below the poverty line
In United Kingdom, 18.6% live below the poverty line as of 2017. In Sierra Leone, however, that number is 56.8% as of 2018.
make 98.5% less money
United Kingdom has a GDP per capita of $57,602 as of 2025, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.
Life
have 3.0 times more children
In United Kingdom, there are approximately 9.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, there are 30.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 44.2 times more likely to die during childbirth
In United Kingdom, approximately 8.0 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 13.3 times more likely to die during infancy
In United Kingdom, approximately 4.1 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 64.5% less likely to have access to electricity
In United Kingdom, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% 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 73.7% less likely to have internet access
In United Kingdom, approximately 95.5% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.
be 31.9% less likely to have access to drinking water
In United Kingdom, approximately 100% of people have access to drinking water (100% in urban areas, and 100% 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 55.7% less on education
United Kingdom spends 5.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 57.6% less on healthcare
United Kingdom spends 11.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 4.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 96.8% less coastline
United Kingdom has a total of 12,429 km of coastline. In Sierra Leone, that number is 402 km.
Safety
be 98.2% more likely to be murdered
United Kingdom has a homicide rate of 1.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, that number is 2.2 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 5.8 times more likely to die in a road accident
In United Kingdom, road accidents kill 2.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, they kill 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 96.5% less strain on fresh water
United Kingdom withdraws 14% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sierra Leone withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 96.0% less CO2
United Kingdom emits 4.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 7.5 times more likely to die from air pollution
In United Kingdom, air pollution causes 13.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, it causes 97.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2017–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: United Kingdom vs. Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: At a glance
How big is Sierra Leone compared to United Kingdom? See an in-depth size comparison.