Quality of life comparison
If you lived in South Africa instead of Timor-Leste, you would:
Health
be 95.5 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Timor-Leste, 0.2% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2020. In South Africa, that number is 19.1% of people as of 2020.
live 4.6 years less
In Timor-Leste, the average life expectancy is 70 years (68 years for men, 72 years for women) as of 2022. In South Africa, that number is 65 years (64 years for men, 67 years for women) as of 2022.
be 7.4 times more likely to be obese
In Timor-Leste, 3.8% of adults are obese as of 2016. In South Africa, that number is 28.3% of people as of 2016.
Economy
make 3.5 times more money
Timor-Leste has a GDP per capita of $3,900 as of 2022, while in South Africa, the GDP per capita is $13,500 as of 2022.
be 60.3% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Timor-Leste, 41.8% live below the poverty line as of 2014. In South Africa, however, that number is 16.6% as of 2016.
be 16.1 times more likely to be unemployed
In Timor-Leste, 1.8% of adults are unemployed as of 2022. In South Africa, that number is 28.8% as of 2022.
Life
be 37.7% less likely to die during childbirth
In Timor-Leste, approximately 204.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In South Africa, 127.0 women do as of 2020.
be 39.5% more likely to be literate
In Timor-Leste, the literacy rate is 68.1% as of 2018. In South Africa, it is 95.0% as of 2019.
be 23.2% less likely to die during infancy
In Timor-Leste, approximately 33.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In South Africa, on the other hand, 25.9 children do as of 2022.
have 40.4% fewer children
In Timor-Leste, there are approximately 29.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In South Africa, there are 17.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 84.6% more likely to have internet access
In Timor-Leste, approximately 39.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In South Africa, about 72.0% do as of 2021.
be 10.6% more likely to have access to improved drinking water
In Timor-Leste, approximately 87% of people have improved drinking water access (98% in urban areas, and 82% in rural areas) as of 2020. In South Africa, that number is 97% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 90% in rural areas) as of 2020.
be 10.7% less likely to have access to electricity
In Timor-Leste, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 79% in rural areas) as of 2021. In South Africa, that number is 89% of people on average (87% in urban areas, and 92% in rural areas) as of 2021.
Expenditures
spend 13.1% less on healthcare
Timor-Leste spends 9.9% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In South Africa, that number is 8.6% of GDP as of 2020.
spend 57.1% more on education
Timor-Leste spends 4.2% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. South Africa spends 6.6% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
Geography
see 4.0 times more coastline
Timor-Leste has a total of 706 km of coastline. In South Africa, that number is 2,798 km.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.
South Africa: At a glance
How big is South Africa compared to Timor-Leste? See an in-depth size comparison.