Jamaica vs Vanuatu
Vanuatu is 11% larger than Jamaica.
JamaicaVanuatuJamaica moved onto Vanuatu · Equal-area projection
0.9×
Jamaica is 0.9× the area of Vanuatu. Put the other way, Vanuatu is 1.11× the size of Jamaica.
 Jamaica |  Vanuatu | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaVanuatu: 1.11× the area | 10,992 km²#161 of 194 | 12,190 km²#158 of 194 |
| Coastline | Coast, no land border | Coast, no land border |
| Land neighbours | 0 | 0 |
| People | ||
| PopulationJamaica: 8.46× the population | 2,837,077#138 of 194 · 2025 | 335,169#173 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityJamaica: 9.39× the density | 258 / km²#37 of 194 | 27 / km²#156 of 194 |
| Urban populationJamaica: 2.66× the urban share | 59%#108 of 192 · 2025 | 22%#184 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateVanuatu: 2.64× the births per woman | 1.35 per woman#166 of 192 · 2024 | 3.57 per woman#42 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthVanuatu: 2.30 points higher | −0.07%#161 of 192 · 2025 | +2.23%#35 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateVanuatu: 2.41× the birth rate | 11.5 per 1,000#116 of 192 · 2024 | 27.7 per 1,000#40 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateJamaica: 1.64× the death rate | 8.2 per 1,000#68 of 192 · 2024 | 5.0 per 1,000#171 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Vanuatu: 19.7 points higher | 18.3%#124 of 192 · 2025 | 38.0%#33 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Jamaica: 4.2 points higher | 8.6%#87 of 192 · 2025 | 4.4%#134 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationVanuatu: 3.7 per 1,000 higher | −3.9 per 1,000#168 of 192 · 2025 | −0.2 per 1,000#84 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadJamaica: 23.3× the refugees for its size | 0.93 per 1,000#62 of 190 · 2025 | 0.04 per 1,000#134 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyVanuatu: 0.1 years longer | 71.6 years#120 of 192 · 2024 | 71.7 years#119 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityJamaica: 1.14× the infant mortality | 16.4 per 1,000 births#75 of 191 · 2024 | 14.4 per 1,000 births#87 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsJamaica: 2.88× the doctors per person | 0.46 per 1,000#130 of 178 · 2023 | 0.16 per 1,000#158 of 178 · 2019 |
| Human Development IndexJamaica: 0.099 higher | 0.720#116 of 190 · 2023 | 0.621#143 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaJamaica: 1.77× the income per person | $7,790#90 of 185 · 2025 | $4,410#120 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPJamaica: 16.8× the economy | $22.71B2025 | $1.35B2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | Lower-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Jamaica: 2.94× the output per person | $13,291#115 of 184 · 2025 | $4,525#156 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthVanuatu: 3.0 points higher | +0.1%#174 of 187 · 2025 | +3.1%#96 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationJamaica: 3.3 points higher | +4.0%#55 of 176 · 2025 | +0.7%#149 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentVanuatu: 1.55× the unemployment | 3.3%#127 of 178 · 2025 | 5.1%#88 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyVanuatu: 13.9× the share in extreme poverty | 1.4%#79 of 149 · 2021 | 19.5%#36 of 149 · 2019 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Jamaica: 7.6 higher | 39.9#38 of 149 · 2021 | 32.3#100 of 149 · 2019 |
| Jobs in agricultureVanuatu: 30.6 points higher | 13.9% of jobs#97 of 178 · 2025 | 44.5% of jobs#31 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryJamaica: 7.1 points higher | 17.1% of jobs#112 of 178 · 2025 | 10.0% of jobs#155 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesJamaica: 23.5 points higher | 68.9% of jobs#57 of 178 · 2025 | 45.4% of jobs#136 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentVanuatu: 1.2 points higher | 1.2% of GDP#122 of 184 · 2025 | 2.4% of GDP#78 of 184 · 2025 |
| Exports | — | 25.3% of GDP#113 of 168 · 2024 |
| Military spending | 1.4% of GDP#94 of 155 · 2025 | — |
| Internet users | 90%#54 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| Mobile subscriptionsJamaica: 1.33× the mobile subscriptions | 118 per 100#87 of 191 · 2024 | 89 per 100#142 of 191 · 2023 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaJamaica: 1.56× the forest share | 57% of land#37 of 192 · 2024 | 36% of land#80 of 192 · 2023 |
| CO₂ per personJamaica: 3.26× the CO₂ per person | 2.84 t a year#86 of 185 · 2024 | 0.87 t a year#133 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyVanuatu: 14.5 points higher | 10.5%#141 of 190 · 2021 | 25.0%#92 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricityJamaica: 32.2 points higher | 97.7%#120 of 192 · 2024 | 65.5%#158 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Jamaica: 3.1× the air pollution | 21.7 µg/m³#75 of 191 · 2023 | 7.0 µg/m³#173 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landJamaica: 15.1 points higher | 19.9% of land#83 of 191 · 2025 | 4.8% of land#165 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landJamaica: 9.9 points higher | 11.5% of land#87 of 190 · 2024 | 1.6% of land#167 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stress | 12.4%#82 of 176 · 2022 | — |
| PrecipitationAbout the same rain and snow | 2,051 mm#29 of 180 · 2022 | 2,000 mm#32 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityVanuatu: 0.41 higher | +0.54#67 of 193 · 2025 | +0.95#39 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionJamaica: 0.09 higher | −0.09#84 of 193 · 2025 | −0.18#91 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateJamaica: 165× the homicide rate | 49.4 per 100,000#3 of 146 · 2023 | 0.3 per 100,000#139 of 146 · 2020 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Constitutional monarchyparliamentary democracy (Parliament) under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm | Parliamentary republic |
| Capital | Kingston | Port-Vila |
| Currency | Jamaican dollar (JMD) | Vanuatu vatus (VUV) |
| Official languages | English, Jamaican Patois | English, French, Bislama |
| Traffic drives | On the left | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC−5 | UTC+11 |
| Calling code | +1 876 | +678 |
| Region | Caribbean, North America | Melanesia, Oceania |
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; Vanuatu at 16° S is stretched to 1.08×. 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 Vanuatu?
- No. Jamaica is 10% smaller than Vanuatu. Jamaica covers 10,992 km² and Vanuatu covers 12,190 km².
- How many times does Jamaica fit into Vanuatu?
- About 1.1 times: Vanuatu has 1.11× the area of Jamaica.
- Why do Jamaica and Vanuatu 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 Vanuatu about 1.08×. 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 Vanuatu?
- Jamaica: 2,837,077 people against 335,169. Density: Jamaica 258 per km², Vanuatu 27 per km².
- Which is richer, Jamaica or Vanuatu?
- By gross national income per person, Jamaica: $7,790 against $4,410 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.77× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Jamaica or Vanuatu?
- In Vanuatu: life expectancy at birth is 71.7 years, against 71.6 — 0.1 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Jamaica and Vanuatu have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Jamaica: constitutional monarchy; Vanuatu: parliamentary republic.