If you lived in Bulgaria instead of Puerto Rico, you would:

Health

be 52.1% less likely to be obese

In Puerto Rico, 42.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Bulgaria, that number is 20.3% of people as of 2024.

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live 6.1 years less

In Puerto Rico, the average life expectancy is 82 years (78 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In Bulgaria, that number is 76 years (72 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2024.

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be 75.5% more likely to die by suicide

Puerto Rico has a suicide rate of 5.4 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Bulgaria, it is 9.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 40.9% less likely to be unemployed

In Puerto Rico, 6.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Bulgaria, that number is 3.5% as of 2025.

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make 50.0% less money

Puerto Rico has a GDP per capita of $40,620 as of 2025, while in Bulgaria, the GDP per capita is $20,328 as of 2025.

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Life

be 45.5% less likely to die during childbirth

In Puerto Rico, approximately 11.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Bulgaria, 6.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 23.8% 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 Bulgaria, on the other hand, 4.6 children do as of 2024.

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have 45.6% more children

In Puerto Rico, there are approximately 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Bulgaria, there are 8.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Geography

see 29.3% less coastline

Puerto Rico has a total of 501 km of coastline. In Bulgaria, that number is 354 km.

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Safety

be 92.5% less likely to be murdered

Puerto Rico has a homicide rate of 14.6 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Bulgaria, that number is 1.1 per 100,000 as of 2023.

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be 32.8% less likely to die in a road accident

In Puerto Rico, road accidents kill 12.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Bulgaria, they kill 8.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 32.3% more home broadband

Puerto Rico has 28.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Bulgaria has 37.0 as of 2023.

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live with 2.1 times more strain on fresh water

Puerto Rico withdraws 20% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Bulgaria withdraws 40% as of 2022.

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Environment

emit 10.2% more CO2

Puerto Rico emits 4.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Bulgaria emits 5.3 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), The World Factbook (2022), World Health Organization (2024), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021). How we calculate this

Bulgaria: At a glance

Bulgaria is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 108,489 sq km. The Bulgars, a Central Asian Turkic tribe, merged with the local Slavic inhabitants in the late 7th century to form the first Bulgarian state. In succeeding centuries, Bulgaria struggled with the Byzantine Empire to assert its place in the Balkans, but by the end of the 14th century the country was overrun by the Ottoman Turks. Northern Bulgaria attained autonomy in 1878 and all of Bulgaria became independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1908. Having fought on the losing side in both World Wars, Bulgaria fell within the Soviet sphere of influence and became a People's Republic in 1946. Communist domination ended in 1990, when Bulgaria held its first multiparty election since World War II and began the contentious process of moving toward political democracy and a market economy while combating inflation, unemployment, corruption, and crime. The country joined NATO in 2004 and the EU in 2007.
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How big is Bulgaria compared to Puerto Rico? See an in-depth size comparison.

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