World Bank · 14 metrics compared
Maldives vs Sri Lanka
Maldives and Sri Lanka compared across 14 demographic and economic metrics. Maldives leads in 6 of the comparable categories.
| Metric | Maldives | Sri Lanka |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 525,994 | 22,037,000 |
| GDP Per Capita | $12,588 | $3,799 |
| Life Expectancy | 81.0 | 77.5 |
| Population Growth Rate | 0.36 | -0.65 |
| Urban Population | 41.5% | 20.1% |
| Fertility Rate | 1.57 | 1.97 |
| Infant Mortality (per 1000) | 5.0 | 5.3 |
| Literacy Rate | - | 92.7% |
| Unemployment Rate | 4.0% | 4.5% |
| Internet Users | 83.9% | 48.3% |
| CO2 Per Capita (tonnes) | - | - |
| Physicians Per 1000 | - | 1.14 |
| Gini Index | 29.3 | 37.7 |
| Forest Area | 2.8% | 34.0% |
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Frequently Asked Questions
Maldives has a population of 525,994 compared to Sri Lanka's 22,037,000.
Across the metrics compared, Maldives leads in 6 categories while Sri Lanka leads in 2. However, "better" depends on what matters most to you, income, cost of living, education, climate, and personal preferences all play a role.
International data from the World Bank Open Data API. Population and economic data are latest available estimates.
Comparison based on World Bank Open Data. Most recent available year used for each metric. Green highlighting indicates favorable values where applicable.
Comparing Maldives and Sri Lanka on U.S. population demographics requires lining up the underlying the U.S. Census Bureau ACS and decennial files data side by side. The table above runs the comparison on the canonical fields; the narrative below identifies the factor or factors that drive the most meaningful difference between the two.
For households or analysts using this comparison as a decision input, the right framing is usually not "which is better" in aggregate but "which is better for the specific decision in front of you." the U.S. Census Bureau ACS and decennial files captures the raw data; the framing depends on whether the question is investment, residency, planning, or research.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS, 2026.