Quality of life comparison
If you lived in South Korea instead of Puerto Rico, you would:
Health
live 1.3 years longer
In Puerto Rico, the average life expectancy is 82 years (78 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2022. In South Korea, that number is 83 years (80 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2022.
Economy
make 17.7% more money
Puerto Rico has a GDP per capita of $43,000 as of 2023, while in South Korea, the GDP per capita is $50,600 as of 2023.
be 55.7% less likely to be unemployed
In Puerto Rico, 6.0% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In South Korea, that number is 2.6% as of 2023.
pay a 15.2% higher top tax rate
Puerto Rico has a top tax rate of 33.0% as of 2016. In South Korea, the top tax rate is 38.0% as of 2016.
Life
be 76.5% less likely to die during childbirth
In Puerto Rico, approximately 34.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In South Korea, 8.0 women do as of 2020.
be 52.5% less likely to die during infancy
In Puerto Rico, approximately 6.0 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In South Korea, on the other hand, 2.9 children do as of 2022.
have 11.3% fewer children
In Puerto Rico, there are approximately 7.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In South Korea, there are 6.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022.
Basic Needs
be 26.1% more likely to have internet access
In Puerto Rico, approximately 77.7% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In South Korea, about 98.0% do as of 2021.
Expenditures
spend 30.6% more on education
Puerto Rico spends 3.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. South Korea spends 4.7% of total GDP on education as of 2019.
Geography
see 4.8 times more coastline
Puerto Rico has a total of 501 km of coastline. In South Korea, that number is 2,413 km.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Puerto Rican Department of Treasury, National Tax Service, South Korea.
South Korea: At a glance
How big is South Korea compared to Puerto Rico? See an in-depth size comparison.