Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in United States instead of Puerto Rico, you would:

Health

live 1.1 years less

In Puerto Rico, the average life expectancy is 82 years (78 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2022. In United States, that number is 81 years (78 years for men, 83 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

make 71.2% more money

Puerto Rico has a GDP per capita of $43,000 as of 2023, while in United States, the GDP per capita is $73,600 as of 2023.

be 39.1% less likely to be unemployed

In Puerto Rico, 6.0% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In United States, that number is 3.6% as of 2023.

pay a 20.0% higher top tax rate

Puerto Rico has a top tax rate of 33.0% as of 2016. In United States, the top tax rate is 39.6% as of 2016.

Life

be 38.2% less likely to die during childbirth

In Puerto Rico, approximately 34.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In United States, 21.0 women do as of 2020.

be 14.4% 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 United States, on the other hand, 5.2 children do as of 2022.

have 56.4% more children

In Puerto Rico, there are approximately 7.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In United States, there are 12.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

Basic Needs

be 18.4% more likely to have internet access

In Puerto Rico, approximately 77.7% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In United States, about 92.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 69.4% more on education

Puerto Rico spends 3.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2021. United States spends 6.1% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

Geography

see 39.8 times more coastline

Puerto Rico has a total of 501 km of coastline. In United States, that number is 19,924 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook, Puerto Rican Department of Treasury, Internal Revenue Service.

United States: At a glance

United States (sometimes abbreviated US or USA) is a sovereign country in North America, with a total land area of approximately 9,147,593 sq km. Britain's American colonies broke with the mother country in 1776 and were recognized as the new nation of the United States of America following the Treaty of Paris in 1783. During the 19th and 20th centuries, 37 new states were added to the original 13 as the nation expanded across the North American continent and acquired a number of overseas possessions. The two most traumatic experiences in the nation's history were the Civil War (1861-65), in which a northern Union of states defeated a secessionist Confederacy of 11 southern slave states, and the Great Depression of the 1930s, an economic downturn during which about a quarter of the labor force lost its jobs. Buoyed by victories in World Wars I and II and the end of the Cold War in 1991, the US remains the world's most powerful nation state. Since the end of World War II, the economy has achieved relatively steady growth, low unemployment and inflation, and rapid advances in technology.
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How big is United States compared to Puerto Rico? See an in-depth size comparison.

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