Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Sao Tome and Principe instead of Guatemala, you would:

Health

be 41.5% less likely to be obese

In Guatemala, 21.2% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Sao Tome and Principe, that number is 12.4% of people as of 2016.

live 5.8 years less

In Guatemala, the average life expectancy is 73 years (71 years for men, 75 years for women) as of 2022. In Sao Tome and Principe, that number is 67 years (65 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

make 63.0% less money

Guatemala has a GDP per capita of $9,200 as of 2022, while in Sao Tome and Principe, the GDP per capita is $3,400 as of 2022.

be 4.7 times more likely to be unemployed

In Guatemala, 3.0% of adults are unemployed as of 2022. In Sao Tome and Principe, that number is 14.3% as of 2022.

Life

be 13.8% more likely to be literate

In Guatemala, the literacy rate is 83.3% as of 2021. In Sao Tome and Principe, it is 94.8% as of 2021.

have 24.8% more children

In Guatemala, there are approximately 21.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sao Tome and Principe, there are 26.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 52.1% more likely to die during childbirth

In Guatemala, approximately 96.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Sao Tome and Principe, 146.0 women do as of 2020.

be 69.5% more likely to die during infancy

In Guatemala, approximately 26.2 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Sao Tome and Principe, on the other hand, 44.4 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 19.8% less likely to have access to electricity

In Guatemala, approximately 98% of people have electricity access (98% in urban areas, and 98% in rural areas) as of 2021. In Sao Tome and Principe, that number is 78% of people on average (80% in urban areas, and 74% in rural areas) as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 24.6% less on healthcare

Guatemala spends 6.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Sao Tome and Principe, that number is 4.9% of GDP as of 2020.

spend 61.3% more on education

Guatemala spends 3.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. Sao Tome and Principe spends 5.0% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

Geography

see 47.8% less coastline

Guatemala has a total of 400 km of coastline. In Sao Tome and Principe, that number is 209 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.

Sao Tome and Principe: At a glance

Sao Tome and Principe is a sovereign country in Africa, with a total land area of approximately 964 sq km. Discovered and claimed by Portugal in the late 15th century, the islands' sugar-based economy gave way to coffee and cocoa in the 19th century - all grown with African plantation slave labor, a form of which lingered into the 20th century. While independence was achieved in 1975, democratic reforms were not instituted until the late 1980s. The country held its first free elections in 1991, but frequent internal wrangling between the various political parties precipitated repeated changes in leadership and two failed coup attempts in 1995 and 2003. In 2012, three opposition parties combined in a no confidence vote to bring down the majority government of former Prime Minister Patrice TROVOADA. The new government of Prime Minister Gabriel Arcanjo Ferreira DA COSTA is entirely composed of opposition party members with limited experience in governance. New oil discoveries in the Gulf of Guinea may attract increased attention to the small island nation.
Read more

How big is Sao Tome and Principe compared to Guatemala? See an in-depth size comparison.

Share this

ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Sao Tome and Principe.or Guatemala It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.