Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Virgin Islands instead of Jamaica, you would:
Health
live 9.2 years longer
In Jamaica, the average life expectancy is 72 years (69 years for men, 74 years for women) as of 2024. In Virgin Islands, that number is 81 years (78 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024.
Economy
make 5.5 times more money
Jamaica has a GDP per capita of $8,003 as of 2025, while in Virgin Islands, the GDP per capita is $44,321 as of 2022.
be 3.5 times more likely to be unemployed
In Jamaica, 3.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Virgin Islands, that number is 11.4% as of 2025.
Life
be 53.4% 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 Virgin Islands, on the other hand, 7.7 children do as of 2022.
Basic Needs
be 13.6% more likely to have access to drinking water
In Jamaica, approximately 88% of people have access to drinking water as of 2024. In Virgin Islands, 99% of people do as of 2024.
be 28.1% less likely to have internet access
In Jamaica, approximately 90.1% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Virgin Islands, about 64.8% do as of 2022.
Geography
see 81.6% less coastline
Jamaica has a total of 1,022 km of coastline. In Virgin Islands, that number is 188 km.
Infrastructure
find 37.0% less home broadband
Jamaica has 16.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Virgin Islands has 10.1 as of 2022.
Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), The World Factbook (2022). How we calculate this
Compare further: Jamaica vs. Virgin Islands
Virgin Islands: At a glance
How big is Virgin Islands compared to Jamaica? See an in-depth size comparison.