Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Macau instead of Jamaica, you would:

Health

live 11.7 years longer

In Jamaica, the average life expectancy is 72 years (69 years for men, 74 years for women) as of 2024. In Macau, that number is 83 years (81 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2024.

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Economy

be 28.6% less likely to be unemployed

In Jamaica, 3.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Macau, that number is 2.4% as of 2025.

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make 9.5 times more money

Jamaica has a GDP per capita of $8,003 as of 2025, while in Macau, the GDP per capita is $75,902 as of 2025.

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Life

be 72.0% less likely to die during infancy

In Jamaica, approximately 16.4 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Macau, on the other hand, 4.6 children do as of 2022.

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have 53.7% fewer children

In Jamaica, there are approximately 11.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Macau, there are 5.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 14.2% more likely to have access to drinking water

In Jamaica, approximately 88% of people have access to drinking water as of 2024. In Macau, 100% of people do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 36.5% less on education

Jamaica spends 5.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Macau spends 3.5% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

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Geography

see 96.0% less coastline

Jamaica has a total of 1,022 km of coastline. In Macau, that number is 41 km.

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Safety

be 98.9% less likely to be murdered

Jamaica has a homicide rate of 49.4 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Macau, that number is 0.6 per 100,000 as of 2023.

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Infrastructure

find 86.9% more home broadband

Jamaica has 16.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Macau has 29.9 as of 2024.

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Environment

emit 10.9% less CO2

Jamaica emits 2.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Macau emits 2.5 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2023–2025), The World Factbook (2022). How we calculate this

Compare further: Jamaica vs. Macau

Cost of Living Comparison · 7 categories - 2026 data
Macau is 18.3% more expensive than Jamaica overall
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Size Comparison · See true size
Jamaica is about 390 times bigger than Macau.
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Moving from Jamaica to Macau · Cost, visas & climate
Compare cost of living, salary and climate.
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Macau: At a glance

Macau is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 28 sq km. Colonized by the Portuguese in the 16th century, Macau was the first European settlement in the Far East. Pursuant to an agreement signed by China and Portugal on 13 April 1987, Macau became the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the People's Republic of China on 20 December 1999. In this agreement, China promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's political and economic system would not be imposed on Macau, and that Macau would enjoy a "high degree of autonomy" in all matters except foreign affairs and defense for the subsequent 50 years.
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How big is Macau compared to Jamaica? See an in-depth size comparison.

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