Puerto Rico vs Vanuatu
Vanuatu is 34% larger than Puerto Rico.
Puerto RicoVanuatuPuerto Rico moved onto Vanuatu · Equal-area projection
0.75×
Puerto Rico is 0.75× the area of Vanuatu. Put the other way, Vanuatu is 1.34× the size of Puerto Rico.
 Puerto Rico |  Vanuatu | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaVanuatu: 1.34× the area | 9,104 km² | 12,190 km²#158 of 194 |
| Coastline | Coast, no land border | Coast, no land border |
| Land neighbours | 0 | 0 |
| People | ||
| PopulationPuerto Rico: 9.5× the population | 3,184,8352025 | 335,169#173 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityPuerto Rico: 12.7× the density | 350 / km² | 27 / km²#156 of 194 |
| Urban populationPuerto Rico: 4.23× the urban share | 94%2025 | 22%#184 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateVanuatu: 3.88× the births per woman | 0.92 per woman2024 | 3.57 per woman#42 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthVanuatu: 2.78 points higher | −0.55%2025 | +2.23%#35 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateVanuatu: 4.86× the birth rate | 5.7 per 1,0002024 | 27.7 per 1,000#40 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death ratePuerto Rico: 2.06× the death rate | 10.3 per 1,0002024 | 5.0 per 1,000#171 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Vanuatu: 26.8 points higher | 11.2%2025 | 38.0%#33 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Puerto Rico: 20.9 points higher | 25.3%2025 | 4.4%#134 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationPuerto Rico: 1.9 per 1,000 higher | +1.7 per 1,0002025 | −0.2 per 1,000#84 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroad | 0.00 per 1,0002024 | 0.04 per 1,000#134 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyPuerto Rico: 10.2 years longer | 81.9 years2024 | 71.7 years#119 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortality | — | 14.4 per 1,000 births#87 of 191 · 2024 |
| Doctors | — | 0.16 per 1,000#158 of 178 · 2019 |
| University enrolment | 77.9%2023 | — |
| Human Development Index | — | 0.621#143 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaPuerto Rico: 6.2× the income per person | $27,3202025 | $4,410#120 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPPuerto Rico: 95.5× the economy | $129.37B2025 | $1.35B2025 |
| Income group | High income | Lower-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Puerto Rico: 11.5× the output per person | $52,1962025 | $4,525#156 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthVanuatu: 2.8 points higher | +0.3%2025 | +3.1%#96 of 187 · 2025 |
| Inflation | — | +0.7%#149 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentPuerto Rico: 1.18× the unemployment | 6.0%2025 | 5.1%#88 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | — | 19.5%#36 of 149 · 2019 |
| Income inequality (Gini) | — | 32.3#100 of 149 · 2019 |
| Jobs in agricultureVanuatu: 43.4 points higher | 1.1% of jobs2025 | 44.5% of jobs#31 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryPuerto Rico: 4.7 points higher | 14.7% of jobs2025 | 10.0% of jobs#155 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesPuerto Rico: 38.7 points higher | 84.1% of jobs2025 | 45.4% of jobs#136 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investment | — | 2.4% of GDP#78 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsPuerto Rico: 21.6 points higher | 46.9% of GDP2025 | 25.3% of GDP#113 of 168 · 2024 |
| Internet users | 87%2022 | — |
| Mobile subscriptionsPuerto Rico: 1.42× the mobile subscriptions | 126 per 1002024 | 89 per 100#142 of 191 · 2023 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaPuerto Rico: 1.37× the forest share | 50% of land2024 | 36% of land#80 of 192 · 2023 |
| CO₂ per personPuerto Rico: 5.54× the CO₂ per person | 4.82 t a year2024 | 0.87 t a year#133 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyVanuatu: 22.5 points higher | 2.5%2022 | 25.0%#92 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricityPuerto Rico: 34.5 points higher | 100.0%2024 | 65.5%#158 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Puerto Rico: 1.11× the air pollution | 7.8 µg/m³2023 | 7.0 µg/m³#173 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landPuerto Rico: 1.8 points higher | 6.6% of land2025 | 4.8% of land#165 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landPuerto Rico: 5.0 points higher | 6.6% of land2024 | 1.6% of land#167 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stress | 19.5%2022 | — |
| PrecipitationAbout the same rain and snow | 2,054 mm2022 | 2,000 mm#32 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityVanuatu: 0.58 higher | +0.372025 | +0.95#39 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionPuerto Rico: 0.72 higher | +0.542025 | −0.18#91 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide ratePuerto Rico: 48.7× the homicide rate | 14.6 per 100,0002023 | 0.3 per 100,000#139 of 146 · 2020 |
| State | ||
| Status | Territory of United States of America | Independent state |
| Government | 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 | Parliamentary republic |
| Capital | San Juan | Port-Vila |
| Currency | United States dollar (USD) | Vanuatu vatus (VUV) |
| Official languages | English, Spanish | English, French, Bislama |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC−4 | UTC+11 |
| Calling code | +1 787, +1 939 | +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. Puerto Rico 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 Puerto Rico bigger than Vanuatu?
- No. Puerto Rico is 25% smaller than Vanuatu. Puerto Rico covers 9,104 km² and Vanuatu covers 12,190 km².
- How many times does Puerto Rico fit into Vanuatu?
- About 1.3 times: Vanuatu has 1.34× the area of Puerto Rico.
- Why do Puerto Rico and Vanuatu look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Puerto Rico 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, Puerto Rico or Vanuatu?
- Puerto Rico: 3,184,835 people against 335,169. Density: Puerto Rico 350 per km², Vanuatu 27 per km².
- Which is richer, Puerto Rico or Vanuatu?
- By gross national income per person, Puerto Rico: $27,320 against $4,410 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 6.2× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Puerto Rico or Vanuatu?
- In Puerto Rico: life expectancy at birth is 81.9 years, against 71.7 — 10.2 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Puerto Rico and Vanuatu have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Puerto Rico: dependent territory; Vanuatu: parliamentary republic.