Quality of life comparison

compared to

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

Health

live 8.5 years longer

In Sao Tome and Principe, the average life expectancy is 67 years (65 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2022. In Bulgaria, that number is 76 years (72 years for men, 79 years for women) as of 2022.

be 2.0 times more likely to be obese

In Sao Tome and Principe, 12.4% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Bulgaria, that number is 25.0% of people as of 2016.

Economy

make 6.1 times more money

Sao Tome and Principe has a GDP per capita of $5,500 as of 2023, while in Bulgaria, the GDP per capita is $33,300 as of 2023.

be 69.7% less likely to be unemployed

In Sao Tome and Principe, 14.2% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Bulgaria, that number is 4.3% as of 2023.

be 62.9% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Sao Tome and Principe, 55.5% live below the poverty line as of 2017. In Bulgaria, however, that number is 20.6% as of 2022.

Life

be 95.2% less likely to die during childbirth

In Sao Tome and Principe, approximately 146.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Bulgaria, 7.0 women do as of 2020.

be 82.0% less likely to die during infancy

In Sao Tome and Principe, approximately 44.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Bulgaria, on the other hand, 8.0 children do as of 2022.

have 70.4% fewer children

In Sao Tome and Principe, there are approximately 26.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Bulgaria, there are 7.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Basic Needs

be 28.2% more likely to have access to electricity

In Sao Tome and Principe, approximately 78% of people have electricity access (80% in urban areas, and 74% in rural areas) as of 2022. In Bulgaria, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2022.

be 47.1% more likely to have internet access

In Sao Tome and Principe, approximately 51.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Bulgaria, about 75.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 20.0% less on education

Sao Tome and Principe spends 5.0% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Bulgaria spends 4.0% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 73.5% more on healthcare

Sao Tome and Principe spends 4.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Bulgaria, that number is 8.5% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 69.4% more coastline

Sao Tome and Principe has a total of 209 km of coastline. In Bulgaria, that number is 354 km.

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

Bulgaria: At a glance

Bulgaria is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 108,489 sq km. The Bulgars, a Central Asian Turkic tribe, merged with the local Slavic inhabitants in the late 7th century to form the first Bulgarian state. In succeeding centuries, Bulgaria struggled with the Byzantine Empire to assert its place in the Balkans, but by the end of the 14th century the country was overrun by the Ottoman Turks. Northern Bulgaria attained autonomy in 1878 and all of Bulgaria became independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1908. Having fought on the losing side in both World Wars, Bulgaria fell within the Soviet sphere of influence and became a People's Republic in 1946. Communist domination ended in 1990, when Bulgaria held its first multiparty election since World War II and began the contentious process of moving toward political democracy and a market economy while combating inflation, unemployment, corruption, and crime. The country joined NATO in 2004 and the EU in 2007.
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How big is Bulgaria compared to Sao Tome and Principe? See an in-depth size comparison.

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