Jamaica vs Puerto Rico
Jamaica is 21% larger than Puerto Rico.
JamaicaPuerto RicoJamaica moved onto Puerto Rico · Equal-area projection
1.21×
Jamaica is 1.21× the area of Puerto Rico.
 Jamaica |  Puerto Rico | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaJamaica: 1.21× the area | 10,992 km²#161 of 194 | 9,104 km² |
| Coastline | Coast, no land border | Coast, no land border |
| Land neighbours | 0 | 0 |
| People | ||
| PopulationPuerto Rico: 1.12× the population | 2,837,077#138 of 194 · 2025 | 3,184,8352025 |
| DensityPuerto Rico: 1.36× the density | 258 / km²#37 of 194 | 350 / km² |
| Urban populationPuerto Rico: 1.59× the urban share | 59%#108 of 192 · 2025 | 94%2025 |
| Fertility rateJamaica: 1.47× the births per woman | 1.35 per woman#166 of 192 · 2024 | 0.92 per woman2024 |
| Population growthJamaica: 0.48 points higher | −0.07%#161 of 192 · 2025 | −0.55%2025 |
| Birth rateJamaica: 2.02× the birth rate | 11.5 per 1,000#116 of 192 · 2024 | 5.7 per 1,0002024 |
| Death ratePuerto Rico: 1.26× the death rate | 8.2 per 1,000#68 of 192 · 2024 | 10.3 per 1,0002024 |
| Children under 15Jamaica: 7.1 points higher | 18.3%#124 of 192 · 2025 | 11.2%2025 |
| People over 65Puerto Rico: 16.7 points higher | 8.6%#87 of 192 · 2025 | 25.3%2025 |
| Net migrationPuerto Rico: 5.6 per 1,000 higher | −3.9 per 1,000#168 of 192 · 2025 | +1.7 per 1,0002025 |
| Refugees abroad | 0.93 per 1,000#62 of 190 · 2025 | 0.00 per 1,0002024 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyPuerto Rico: 10.3 years longer | 71.6 years#120 of 192 · 2024 | 81.9 years2024 |
| Infant mortality | 16.4 per 1,000 births#75 of 191 · 2024 | — |
| Doctors | 0.46 per 1,000#130 of 178 · 2023 | — |
| University enrolment | — | 77.9%2023 |
| Human Development Index | 0.720#116 of 190 · 2023 | — |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaPuerto Rico: 3.51× the income per person | $7,790#90 of 185 · 2025 | $27,3202025 |
| GDPPuerto Rico: 5.7× the economy | $22.71B2025 | $129.37B2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Puerto Rico: 3.93× the output per person | $13,291#115 of 184 · 2025 | $52,1962025 |
| GDP growthPuerto Rico: 0.2 points higher | +0.1%#174 of 187 · 2025 | +0.3%2025 |
| Inflation | +4.0%#55 of 176 · 2025 | — |
| UnemploymentPuerto Rico: 1.82× the unemployment | 3.3%#127 of 178 · 2025 | 6.0%2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 1.4%#79 of 149 · 2021 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 39.9#38 of 149 · 2021 | — |
| Jobs in agricultureJamaica: 12.8 points higher | 13.9% of jobs#97 of 178 · 2025 | 1.1% of jobs2025 |
| Jobs in industryJamaica: 2.4 points higher | 17.1% of jobs#112 of 178 · 2025 | 14.7% of jobs2025 |
| Jobs in servicesPuerto Rico: 15.2 points higher | 68.9% of jobs#57 of 178 · 2025 | 84.1% of jobs2025 |
| Foreign investment | 1.2% of GDP#122 of 184 · 2025 | — |
| Exports | — | 46.9% of GDP2025 |
| Military spending | 1.4% of GDP#94 of 155 · 2025 | — |
| Internet usersJamaica: 1.03× the share online | 90%#54 of 184 · 2024 | 87%2022 |
| Mobile subscriptionsPuerto Rico: 1.07× the mobile subscriptions | 118 per 100#87 of 191 · 2024 | 126 per 1002024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaJamaica: 1.14× the forest share | 57% of land#37 of 192 · 2024 | 50% of land2024 |
| CO₂ per personPuerto Rico: 1.7× the CO₂ per person | 2.84 t a year#86 of 185 · 2024 | 4.82 t a year2024 |
| Renewable energyJamaica: 8.0 points higher | 10.5%#141 of 190 · 2021 | 2.5%2022 |
| Access to electricityPuerto Rico: 2.3 points higher | 97.7%#120 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Jamaica: 2.78× the air pollution | 21.7 µg/m³#75 of 191 · 2023 | 7.8 µg/m³2023 |
| Protected landJamaica: 13.3 points higher | 19.9% of land#83 of 191 · 2025 | 6.6% of land2025 |
| Arable landJamaica: 4.9 points higher | 11.5% of land#87 of 190 · 2024 | 6.6% of land2024 |
| Water stressPuerto Rico: 1.57× the water stress | 12.4%#82 of 176 · 2022 | 19.5%2022 |
| PrecipitationAbout the same rain and snow | 2,051 mm#29 of 180 · 2022 | 2,054 mm2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityJamaica: 0.17 higher | +0.54#67 of 193 · 2025 | +0.372025 |
| Control of corruptionPuerto Rico: 0.63 higher | −0.09#84 of 193 · 2025 | +0.542025 |
| Homicide rateJamaica: 3.38× the homicide rate | 49.4 per 100,000#3 of 146 · 2023 | 14.6 per 100,0002023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Territory of United States of America |
| Government | Constitutional monarchyparliamentary democracy (Parliament) under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm | Dependent territoryunincorporated organized territory of the US with local self-government; republican form of territorial government with separate executive, legislative, and judicial branches; note - reference Puerto Rican Federal Relations Act, 2 March 1917, as amended by Public Law 600, 3 July 1950 |
| Capital | Kingston | San Juan |
| Currency | Jamaican dollar (JMD) | United States dollar (USD) |
| Official languages | English, Jamaican Patois | English, Spanish |
| Traffic drives | On the left | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC−5 | UTC−4 |
| Calling code | +1 876 | +1 787, +1 939 |
| Region | Caribbean, North America | Caribbean, North America |
Area: Wikidata. Population, income, health, economy, environment and governance: World Bank. Human Development Index: UNDP. Government: CIA World Factbook. Ranks among the 194 independent states. All sources
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Jamaica sits at about 18° N and is stretched to 1.11× its true area; Puerto Rico at 18° N is stretched to 1.11×. Here the two are distorted about the same amount, so Mercator gets this pair roughly right. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Jamaica bigger than Puerto Rico?
- Yes. Jamaica is 21% larger than Puerto Rico. Jamaica covers 10,992 km² and Puerto Rico covers 9,104 km².
- How many times does Puerto Rico fit into Jamaica?
- About 1.2 times: Jamaica has 1.21× the area of Puerto Rico.
- Why do Jamaica and Puerto Rico look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Jamaica is drawn about 1.11× its true area there and Puerto Rico about 1.11×. For this pair the distortion is similar, so Mercator gets the comparison roughly right. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Jamaica or Puerto Rico?
- Puerto Rico: 3,184,835 people against 2,837,077. Density: Jamaica 258 per km², Puerto Rico 350 per km².
- Which is richer, Jamaica or Puerto Rico?
- By gross national income per person, Puerto Rico: $27,320 against $7,790 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 3.51× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Jamaica or Puerto Rico?
- In Puerto Rico: life expectancy at birth is 81.9 years, against 71.6 — 10.3 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Jamaica and Puerto Rico have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Jamaica: constitutional monarchy; Puerto Rico: dependent territory.