Country profile · Sub-Saharan Africa · LMC
🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe
Lower middle income. Capital Sao Tome. Lower-third GDP/cap (LMC · MID) - 40 series with wider survey lag risk.
- 235.5K
- Population
- $825 million
- GDP
- $3,503
- GDP / capita
- 69.9 years
- Life expectancy
Lower-third GDP/cap · MID
Sao Tome and Principe ranks 205th of 217 by total GDP and 155th for life expectancy - a lower middle income economy in Sub-Saharan Africa.
- #205
- World GDP rank (of 217)
- $3,503
- GDP per capita
- #155
- Life-expectancy rank
- #181
- Population rank
Sao Tome and Principe lands in the lower third of GDP/cap (#154 of 214) - LMC · MID - so national averages need rural/urban caution.
Sao Tome and Principe vs all countries by total GDP
Where this economy's World Bank total GDP sits among every country with a positive observation (inventory signal, not a virtue ranking)
$824,992,558 205th of 214 higher than 9 of 214 countries
Countries banded by World Bank total GDP (current US$)
Each bar is a $0.001K-wide band; taller bars hold more countries. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source World Bank, GDP (current US$) · 2026-08-14
Sao Tome and Principe on the global income map
Sao Tome and Principe (STP) sits in the lower GDP/cap third - plotted with largest peers; bubble area = population.
- Sao Tome and Principe: GDP per capita $3,503 (2024), life expectancy 69.9 years (2024), lower-middle income.
- India: GDP per capita $2,695 (2024), life expectancy 72.2 years (2024), lower-middle income.
- China: GDP per capita $13,303 (2024), life expectancy 78.0 years (2024), upper-middle income.
- United States: GDP per capita $84,534 (2024), life expectancy 78.9 years (2024), high income, OECD member.
- Indonesia: GDP per capita $4,925 (2024), life expectancy 71.3 years (2024), upper-middle income.
- Pakistan: GDP per capita $1,479 (2024), life expectancy 67.8 years (2024), lower-middle income.
- Nigeria: GDP per capita $1,084 (2024), life expectancy 54.6 years (2024), low income.
- Brazil: GDP per capita $10,311 (2024), life expectancy 76.0 years (2024), upper-middle income.
- Bangladesh: GDP per capita $2,593 (2024), life expectancy 74.9 years (2024), lower-middle income.
- Russian Federation: GDP per capita $14,889 (2024), life expectancy 73.4 years (2024), high income.
- Ethiopia: GDP per capita $1,134 (2024), life expectancy 67.6 years (2024), low income.
- Mexico: GDP per capita $14,186 (2024), life expectancy 75.3 years (2024), high income, OECD member.
- Japan: GDP per capita $32,487 (2024), life expectancy 84.0 years (2024), high income, OECD member.
- Egypt, Arab Rep.: GDP per capita $3,338 (2024), life expectancy 71.8 years (2024), lower-middle income.
- Philippines: GDP per capita $3,985 (2024), life expectancy 69.9 years (2024), lower-middle income.
- Congo, Dem. Rep.: GDP per capita $693 (2024), life expectancy 62.1 years (2024), low income.
- Viet Nam: GDP per capita $4,717 (2024), life expectancy 74.7 years (2024), upper-middle income.
- Iran, Islamic Rep.: GDP per capita $5,190 (2024), life expectancy 77.9 years (2024), upper-middle income.
- Turkiye: GDP per capita $15,893 (2024), life expectancy 77.4 years (2024), high income, OECD member.
- Germany: GDP per capita $56,104 (2024), life expectancy 80.8 years (2024), high income, OECD member.
- Thailand: GDP per capita $7,387 (2024), life expectancy 76.6 years (2024), upper-middle income.
- United Kingdom: GDP per capita $53,246 (2024), life expectancy 81.4 years (2024), high income, OECD member.
- Tanzania: GDP per capita $1,193 (2024), life expectancy 67.2 years (2024), lower-middle income.
- France: GDP per capita $46,103 (2024), life expectancy 83.0 years (2024), high income, OECD member.
- South Africa: GDP per capita $6,267 (2024), life expectancy 66.3 years (2024), upper-middle income.
- Italy: GDP per capita $40,385 (2024), life expectancy 84.0 years (2024), high income, OECD member.
- Kenya: GDP per capita $2,133 (2024), life expectancy 63.8 years (2024), lower-middle income.
- Myanmar: GDP per capita $1,359 (2024), life expectancy 67.1 years (2024), lower-middle income.
- Colombia: GDP per capita $7,951 (2024), life expectancy 77.9 years (2024), upper-middle income, OECD member.
- Korea, Rep.: GDP per capita $36,239 (2024), life expectancy 83.6 years (2024), high income, OECD member.
- Sudan: GDP per capita $985 (2024), life expectancy 66.5 years (2024), low income.
Overview
Sao Tome and Principe has a population of 235.5K, making it the 181st-most populous country out of 217 tracked in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Its economy totals $825 million - ranked 205th globally by total GDP. GDP per capita stands at $3,503, placing it in the Lower middle income category.
Life expectancy at birth is 69.9 years (ranked 155th globally), reflecting overall health outcomes as measured by the World Bank.
The capital is Sao Tome.
👥 Demographics
💰 Economy
🏥 Health
📚 Education
🌍 Environment
🏗️ Infrastructure
⚖️ Social
🌐 Livability Score
One composite verdict from 5 of 5 World Bank series (life expectancy, under-5 mortality, electricity access, clean-water access, homicide rate), each benchmarked against every country tracking that series. A missing series never silently drags the score down: its weight redistributes across the series Sao Tome and Principe does report.
All indicators for Sao Tome and Principe
40 latest observations from World Bank WDI, WHO GHO, and ILO ILOSTAT (vintage through 2026-08-14). Values match the topic cards above; this table is the machine-readable export view analysts expect on a country profile.
🫀 Disease Burden
Tuberculosis deaths at 13.0 per 100,000 sit well above the fleet midpoint (4.1) on Sao Tome and Principe; the cause list below is truncated to the steepest rates instead of repeating the full WHO menu. Summary metrics use 2021 data; cause-specific cards show their own observation year.
Non-communicable Diseases
Injuries & External Causes
Sources: WHO Global Health Observatory. NCD mortality rate: 2021. Rates are age-standardized per 100,000 population. Premature NCD risk covers cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes, and chronic respiratory disease.
Compare Sao Tome and Principe with near GDP/cap peers
Side-by-side pages for the closest ABS GDP/cap neighbours - not a full-roster dropdown.
Read with Sao Tome and Principe
Nearest GDP/cap peers and LE poles for Sao Tome and Principe (LMC · MID), replacing the old fixed guide and region clone strip.
LMC MID
Djibouti · LMC
Djibouti GDP/cap $3,553 is higher by $50 than Sao Tome and Principe; LE stamp MID vs MID.
Honduras · LMC
Honduras GDP/cap $3,416 is lower by $87 than Sao Tome and Principe; LE stamp LONG vs MID.
Egypt, Arab Rep. · LMC
Egypt, Arab Rep. GDP/cap $3,338 is lower by $164 than Sao Tome and Principe; LE stamp LONG vs MID.
Uzbekistan · LMC
Uzbekistan GDP/cap $3,337 is lower by $165 than Sao Tome and Principe; LE stamp LONG vs MID.
Sub-Saharan Africa WDI roster
Sao Tome and Principe stamps LMC · MID inside Sub-Saharan Africa - open the region roster after the ABS peers.
GDP/cap leaderboard (#154)
Sao Tome and Principe ranks #154 of 214 on NY.GDP.PCAP.CD under the LMC Atlas band.
What the data says about Sao Tome and Principe
Sao Tome and Principe is a lower-middle-income economy, a tier where a large share of economic activity often sits outside formally measured, monetized markets, so official statistics can understate real living standards more than the headline dollar figures suggest. With a comparatively small population, a single survey round or a change in methodology can shift Sao Tome and Principe's reported figures noticeably from one release to the next, independent of any real change on the ground. Where a field on this page reads "N/A," it usually means the relevant agency has not yet published a recent estimate for Sao Tome and Principe.
Sao Tome and Principe lands in the lower third of GDP/cap (#154 of 214) - LMC · MID - so national averages need rural/urban caution.
Sao Tome and Principe's 235.5K people and $825 million GDP (205th) yield $3,503 per person in the lower GDP/cap third. Life expectancy 69.9 years (155th, MID) and survey lag both matter when reading single-year cells. 40 official points sit in the tables.
Nearest ABS GDP/cap peer: Djibouti at $3,553 (Δ $50). Open that profile or the GDP/cap leaderboard before treating any single year as destiny.
What to do with Sao Tome and Principe's numbers
Sao Tome and Principe is classified LMC with MID. Use that context before comparing any single figure to another country.
- Compare Sao Tome and Principe directly against any other country, side by side, on the indicators that matter to you. Compare countries
- See exactly where Sao Tome and Principe ranks among all 217 tracked countries on a specific indicator, not just the ones shown here. Indicator rank finder
- Learn the common mistakes people make citing country statistics before you quote a number from this page. Reading country profiles
Figures above are sourced from World Bank, WHO, and ILO (OECD where applicable) as cited below; always verify against the primary source before citing a specific number.
Source: World Bank Open Data, Source: WHO Global Health Observatory, Source: ILO ILOSTAT. World Bank and ILO data licensed under CC BY 4.0.
Disclaimer: This information is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical, financial, or legal advice. See our full disclaimer and editorial policy.
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced and computed.