Quality of Life Comparison


If you lived in South Africa instead of United States, you would:


be 21.8% less likely to be obese

In United States, 36.2% of adults are obese. In South Africa, that number is 28.3% of people.

live 16.2 years less

In United States, the average life expectancy is 80 years (78 years for men, 82 years for women). In South Africa, that number is 64 years (62 years for men, 65 years for women).


make 77.3% less money

United States has a GDP per capita of $59,500, while in South Africa, the GDP per capita is $13,500.

be 6.3 times more likely to be unemployed

In United States, 4.4% of adults are unemployed. In South Africa, that number is 27.6%.

spend 13.6% more on taxes

United States has a top tax rate of 39.6%. In South Africa, the top tax rate is 45.0%.


have 61.6% more children

In United States, there are approximately 12.5 babies per 1,000 people. In South Africa, there are 20.2 babies per 1,000 people.

be 9.9 times more likely to die during childbirth

In United States, approximately 14.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor. In South Africa, 138.0 women do.

be 5.3 times more likely to die during infancy

In United States, approximately 5.8 children die before they reach the age of one. In South Africa, on the other hand, 31.0 children do.

Basic Needs

be 15.0% less likely to have access to electricity

In United States, 100% of the population has electricity access. In South Africa, 85% of the population do.

be 29.1% less likely to have internet access

In United States, approximately 76.2% of the population has internet access. In South Africa, about 54.0% do.


spend 48.5% less on healthcare

United States spends 17.1% of its total GDP on healthcare. In South Africa, that number is 8.8% of GDP.

spend 18.0% more on education

United States spends 5.0% of its total GDP on education. South Africa spends 5.9% of total GDP on education.


see 86.0% less coastline

United States has a total of 19,924 km of coastline. In South Africa, that number is 2,798 km.

South Africa: At a glance


How big is South Africa compared to United States? See an in-depth size comparison.

The statistics on this page were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Internal Revenue Service, South African Revenue Service.


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