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

Health

be 54.5% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Jamaica, 1.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Mexico, that number is 0.5% of people as of 2024.

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live 3.7 years longer

In Jamaica, the average life expectancy is 72 years (69 years for men, 74 years for women) as of 2024. In Mexico, that number is 75 years (72 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 57.5% more spent on your healthcare

Jamaica spends $869 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Mexico spends $1,368 as of 2023.

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have 5.6 times more doctors per person

Jamaica has 4.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Mexico has 25.9 as of 2022.

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be 4.1 times more likely to die by suicide

Jamaica has a suicide rate of 1.7 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Mexico, it is 7.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 18.8% less likely to be unemployed

In Jamaica, 3.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Mexico, that number is 2.7% as of 2025.

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make 73.6% more money

Jamaica has a GDP per capita of $8,003 as of 2025, while in Mexico, the GDP per capita is $13,889 as of 2025.

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be 3.8 times more likely to live below the poverty line

In Jamaica, 7.8% live below the poverty line as of 2024. In Mexico, however, that number is 29.6% as of 2024.

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Life

be 67.7% less likely to die during childbirth

In Jamaica, approximately 130.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Mexico, 42.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 26.2% 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 Mexico, on the other hand, 12.1 children do as of 2024.

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have 35.0% more children

In Jamaica, there are approximately 11.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Mexico, there are 15.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 13.7% more likely to have access to drinking water

In Jamaica, approximately 88% of people have access to drinking water (90% in urban areas, and 84% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Mexico, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 97% in rural areas) as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 26.3% less on education

Jamaica spends 5.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Mexico spends 4.1% of total GDP on education as of 2022.

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spend 27.6% less on healthcare

Jamaica spends 7.6% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Mexico, that number is 5.5% of GDP as of 2023.

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Geography

see 9.1 times more coastline

Jamaica has a total of 1,022 km of coastline. In Mexico, that number is 9,330 km.

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Safety

be 49.7% less likely to be murdered

Jamaica has a homicide rate of 49.4 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Mexico, that number is 24.9 per 100,000 as of 2023.

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be 32.6% less likely to die in a road accident

In Jamaica, road accidents kill 17.8 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Mexico, they kill 12.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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be 44.7% less likely to feel safe walking alone at night

In Jamaica, 70% of people feel safe walking alone at night as of 2019. In Mexico, that number is 39% as of 2022.

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Infrastructure

find 36.0% more home broadband

Jamaica has 16.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Mexico has 21.7 as of 2024.

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use 2.2 times more electricity

Jamaica uses 1,205 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Mexico uses 2,658 kWh as of 2024.

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live with 3.6 times more strain on fresh water

Jamaica withdraws 12% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Mexico withdraws 45% as of 2022.

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Environment

be 36.4% more likely to die from air pollution

In Jamaica, air pollution causes 22.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Mexico, it causes 30.0 as of 2019.

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emit 28.2% more CO2

Jamaica emits 2.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Mexico emits 3.6 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2022), The World Factbook. How we calculate this

Mexico: At a glance

Mexico is a sovereign country in North America, with a total land area of approximately 1,943,945 sq km. The site of several advanced Amerindian civilizations - including the Olmec, Toltec, Teotihuacan, Zapotec, Maya, and Aztec - Mexico was conquered and colonized by Spain in the early 16th century. Administered as the Viceroyalty of New Spain for three centuries, it achieved its independence early in the 19th century. The global financial crisis beginning in late 2008 caused a massive economic downturn the following year, although growth returned quickly in 2010. Ongoing economic and social concerns include low real wages, underemployment for a large segment of the population, inequitable income distribution, and few advancement opportunities for the largely indigenous population in the impoverished southern states. The elections held in 2000 marked the first time since the 1910 Mexican Revolution that an opposition candidate - Vicente FOX of the National Action Party (PAN) - defeated the party in government, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI). He was succeeded in 2006 by another PAN candidate Felipe CALDERON, but Enrique PENA NIETO regained the presidency for the PRI in 2012. Since 2007, Mexico's powerful drug-trafficking organizations have engaged in bloody feuding, resulting in tens of thousands of drug-related homicides.
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How big is Mexico compared to Jamaica? See an in-depth size comparison.

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