Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of Vanuatu, you would:
Health
be 63.7% less likely to be obese
In Vanuatu, 22.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.2% of people as of 2024.
see 12.5% more spent on your healthcare
Vanuatu spends $141 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sierra Leone spends $159 as of 2023.
be 61.0% less likely to die by suicide
Vanuatu has a suicide rate of 15.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 14.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Vanuatu, 0.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 1.4% of people as of 2024.
live 9.7 years less
In Vanuatu, the average life expectancy is 72 years (70 years for men, 74 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.
have 18.3% fewer doctors per person
Vanuatu has 1.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2019. Sierra Leone has 1.3 as of 2022.
have 12.8% less access to essential health services
Vanuatu scores 47 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sierra Leone scores 41 as of 2021.
Economy
be 37.9% less likely to be unemployed
In Vanuatu, 5.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sierra Leone, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.
be 3.6 times more likely to live below the poverty line
In Vanuatu, 15.9% live below the poverty line as of 2020. In Sierra Leone, however, that number is 56.8% as of 2018.
make 79.0% less money
Vanuatu has a GDP per capita of $4,039 as of 2025, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.
Life
be 3.5 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Vanuatu, approximately 100.0 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 44.7% less likely to be literate
In Vanuatu, the literacy rate is 88.0% as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, it is 48.6% as of 2022.
be 3.8 times more likely to die during infancy
In Vanuatu, approximately 14.4 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 42.4% less likely to have access to electricity
In Vanuatu, approximately 62% of people have electricity access (88% in urban areas, and 54% 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 64.1% less likely to have internet access
In Vanuatu, approximately 69.9% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.
be 21.9% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Vanuatu, approximately 87% of people have access to drinking water (97% in urban areas, and 84% 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 65.7% less on education
Vanuatu spends 7.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 14.6% more on healthcare
Vanuatu spends 4.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 4.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 84.1% less coastline
Vanuatu has a total of 2,528 km of coastline. In Sierra Leone, that number is 402 km.
Safety
be 6.7 times more likely to be murdered
Vanuatu has a homicide rate of 0.3 per 100,000 people as of 2020. In Sierra Leone, that number is 2.2 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 10.4% more likely to die in a road accident
In Vanuatu, road accidents kill 12.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, they kill 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Environment
emit 80.5% less CO2
Vanuatu emits 0.9 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 70.2% more likely to die from air pollution
In Vanuatu, air pollution causes 57.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, it causes 97.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2018–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2022), The World Factbook (2020–2022), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Vanuatu vs. Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: At a glance
How big is Sierra Leone compared to Vanuatu? See an in-depth size comparison.