Which has higher human development index, Lesotho or Tanzania?

Tanzania, at 0.47 HDI against 0.456 HDI in Lesotho as of 2011.

What is the difference in human development index between Lesotho and Tanzania?

0.014 HDI, with Tanzania ahead.

How many years of comparable data are there for Lesotho and Tanzania?

9 years are reported by both, from 1990 to 2011.

Where does this data come from?

http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/data/, published as Human development index (HDI). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Lesotho vs Tanzania: Human development index

Lesotho

0.456 HDI

in 2011

Tanzania

0.47 HDI

in 2011

Lesotho rank

25th

Tanzania rank

22nd

Human development index over time

Lesotho
Tanzania

How they compare

Tanzania currently reports 0.47 HDI against 0.456 HDI in Lesotho, a difference of 0.014 HDI.

The two have swapped places 1 time across 9 shared years of data; in 1990 it was Lesotho ahead.

Lesotho ranks 25th and Tanzania ranks 22nd of 50 countries.

Across the 3 decades both report, Lesotho averaged higher in 2 and Tanzania in 1.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Lesotho	Tanzania	Difference	Ahead
1990s	0.474 HDI	0.353 HDI	0.121 HDI	Lesotho
2000s	0.4338 HDI	0.4075 HDI	0.0263 HDI	Lesotho
2010s	0.454 HDI	0.468 HDI	0.014 HDI	Tanzania

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher human development index, Lesotho or Tanzania?: Tanzania, at 0.47 HDI against 0.456 HDI in Lesotho as of 2011.
What is the difference in human development index between Lesotho and Tanzania?: 0.014 HDI, with Tanzania ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Lesotho and Tanzania?: 9 years are reported by both, from 1990 to 2011.
How do Lesotho and Tanzania rank globally for human development index?: Lesotho ranks 25th and Tanzania ranks 22nd of 50 countries.
Where does this data come from?: http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/data/, published as Human development index (HDI). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Lesotho vs Tanzania: Human development index. Statizoid, drawing on http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/data/. Retrieved 24 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/compare/human-development-index-hdi/lesotho/tanzania/

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About this data

Indicator: Human development index (HDI)
Unit: HDI
Source: http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/data/
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage: 50 places, 459 data points, 1980–2011
Last refreshed: 18 September 2026

The Human Development Index (HDI) is a summary measure of human development. It measures the average achievements in a country in three basic dimensions of human development: a long and healthy life, access to knowledge and a decent standard of living. The HDI is the geometric mean of normalized indices measuring achievements in each dimension. The HDI is the geometric mean of the three dimension indices and embodies imperfect substitutability across all HDI dimensions. It thus addresses one of the most serious criticisms of the linear aggregation formula, which allowed for perfect substitution across dimensions. Some substitutability is inherent in the definition of any index that increases with the values of its components. Data sources: Life expectancy at birth: UNDESA; Mean years of schooling: Barro and Lee; Expected years of schooling: UNESCO Institute for Statistics; Gross national income (GNI) per capita: World Bank.