Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Sierra Leone instead of Zambia, you would:
Health
be 85.1% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Zambia, 9.4% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 1.4% of people as of 2024.
be 29.3% less likely to be obese
In Zambia, 11.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, that number is 8.2% of people as of 2024.
be 13.9% less likely to die by suicide
Zambia has a suicide rate of 7.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, it is 6.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 4.6 years less
In Zambia, the average life expectancy is 67 years (64 years for men, 69 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 34.8% less spent on your healthcare
Zambia spends $244 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Sierra Leone spends $159 as of 2023.
have 58.6% fewer doctors per person
Zambia has 3.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Sierra Leone has 1.3 as of 2022.
have 26.8% less access to essential health services
Zambia scores 56 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Sierra Leone scores 41 as of 2021.
Economy
be 46.8% less likely to be unemployed
In Zambia, 5.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sierra Leone, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.
make 35.8% less money
Zambia has a GDP per capita of $1,318 as of 2025, while in Sierra Leone, the GDP per capita is $846 as of 2025.
Life
be 4.2 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Zambia, approximately 85.0 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 32.3% less likely to be literate
In Zambia, the literacy rate is 71.8% as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, it is 48.6% as of 2022.
be 57.8% more likely to die during infancy
In Zambia, approximately 34.6 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 46.8% more likely to have internet access
In Zambia, approximately 17.1% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Sierra Leone, about 25.1% do as of 2024.
be 30.5% less likely to have access to electricity
In Zambia, approximately 51% of people have electricity access (90% in urban areas, and 18% 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.
Expenditures
spend 35.6% less on education
Zambia spends 4.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Sierra Leone spends 2.6% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 21.1% less on healthcare
Zambia spends 6.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Sierra Leone, that number is 4.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 19.3% less likely to die in a road accident
In Zambia, road accidents kill 17.1 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sierra Leone, they kill 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 82.4% less strain on fresh water
Zambia withdraws 3% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sierra Leone withdraws 0% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 68.5% less CO2
Zambia emits 0.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sierra Leone emits 0.2 tonnes as of 2024.
be 94.0% more likely to die from air pollution
In Zambia, air pollution causes 50.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Sierra Leone, it causes 97.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook (2022). How we calculate this
Compare further: Zambia vs. Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone: At a glance
How big is Sierra Leone compared to Zambia? See an in-depth size comparison.