Country page · South Asia
If you were born in Sri Lanka
1 in 610 babies · 0.16% of births · about 219,736 a year
Right now, about 0.16% of the world's babies are born in Sri Lanka — 1 in 610, or roughly 219,736 a year and 602 a day. Life expectancy there is 77.7 years.
How the 1 in 610 is calculated
This number is not based on population. It uses births: Sri Lanka has about 219,736 births a year, and the world has about 134,147,481. Divide one by the other and you get 0.16% — 1 in 610. Using population instead would understate young countries and overstate ageing ones, so every draw is weighted by births.
Life in Sri Lanka, in numbers
| Indicator | Value | World rank |
|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy women 80.7 · men 74.4 | 77.7 years | 57th highest of 172 countries |
| Chance of dying before 5 5.9 / 1,000 | 0.6% | 43rd lowest of 170 countries |
| Chance of dying before 1 5.2 / 1,000 | 0.5% | 44th lowest of 170 countries |
| Mothers who die giving birth per 100,000 births | 18 | 64th lowest of 170 countries |
| Children per woman | 1.95 | 80th lowest of 172 countries |
| Expected years of schooling | 14.1 years | 71st highest of 168 countries |
| Tertiary enrollment | 20.7% | 115th highest of 168 countries |
| Income per person (PPP) GDP per capita, PPP | $17,065 | 90th highest of 170 countries |
| Income inequality closer to 0 = more equal | 37.70 | 62nd highest of 157 countries |
| People living in cities | 20.5% | 169th highest of 172 countries |
| People working in farming | 25.9% | 102nd lowest of 171 countries |
| People using the internet | 54.6% | 123rd highest of 172 countries |
| Homicide per 100,000 people | 3.3 | 92nd lowest of 155 countries |
| Health costs paid out of pocket share of health spending | 54.8% | 145th lowest of 168 countries |
| Adults living with HIV | 0.10% | 114th highest of 142 countries |
| People who smoke | 20.7% | — |
How to read these numbers
Income is shown in purchasing-power-parity dollars, so it compares what money buys locally rather than market exchange rates. The under-5 rate is the share of babies who die before their fifth birthday; the maternal mortality ratio is per 100,000 live births. A Gini index closer to 0 means a more equal income distribution, and a higher number means a more unequal one.
Each indicator uses the most recent year with a non-empty value, which can differ by country; the rank compares this country with the other 171 in the dataset, not with every country on Earth. Where a value is missing, the page shows a dash rather than an estimate.
Sri Lanka compared with South Asia
Life expectancy in Sri Lanka is 77.7 years, against a South Asia average of 73.7. The under-5 death rate is 0.6%, versus 2.1% across the region. Income per person is $17,065, against $12,947 regionally; expected schooling is 14.1 years against 12.8. 20.5% of people live in cities, against 40.0% in the region.
| Indicator | Sri Lanka | South Asia | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy | 77.7 yrs | 73.7 yrs | 73.3 yrs |
| Under-5 deaths | 0.6% | 2.1% | 2.6% |
| Income per person (PPP) | $17,065 | $12,947 | $30,311 |
| Expected schooling | 14.1 yrs | 12.8 yrs | 13.0 yrs |
| People in cities | 20.5% | 40.0% | 61.6% |
What a life there looks like
Put those numbers together and you get a life: about 77.7 years on average, with roughly 5.9 of every 1,000 babies dying before their fifth birthday. A child can expect 14.1 years of school, and income per person is around $17,065. These are averages — every life still lands somewhere on the distribution.
If you play as someone born in Sri Lanka
The game draws Sri Lanka in about 1 of every 610 births. From there the life runs year by year: 77.7 years of life expectancy on average, a 0.6% chance of dying before five, and an income of about $17,065 per person. Choices move the odds; the starting statistics do not.
Nearby and similar countries
- Chance of being born in Nepal — 1 in 239
- Chance of being born in Bangladesh — 1 in 38
- Chance of being born in India — 1 in 6
- All 172 countries
Frequently asked questions
What are the odds of being born in Sri Lanka?
What is life expectancy in Sri Lanka?
How many babies are born in Sri Lanka each year?
Is Sri Lanka a good country to be born in, in the game?
Source: World Bank World Development Indicators, with UN World Population Prospects 2024 and UN IGME for births and mortality. Values are the most recent non-empty year for each indicator; the year is noted where it differs. Page updated 24 Oct 2026.