Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Japan instead of Puerto Rico, you would:
Health
live 2.1 years longer
In Puerto Rico, the average life expectancy is 82 years (78 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 84 years (81 years for men, 87 years for women) as of 2024.
be 86.1% less likely to be obese
In Puerto Rico, 42.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Japan, that number is 5.9% of people as of 2024.
be 3.2 times more likely to die by suicide
Puerto Rico has a suicide rate of 5.4 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Japan, it is 17.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 59.1% less likely to be unemployed
In Puerto Rico, 6.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Japan, that number is 2.5% as of 2025.
make 11.5% less money
Puerto Rico has a GDP per capita of $40,620 as of 2025, while in Japan, the GDP per capita is $35,951 as of 2025.
Life
be 72.7% 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 Japan, 3.0 women do as of 2023.
be 70.2% 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 Japan, on the other hand, 1.8 children do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 21.8% less on education
Puerto Rico spends 4.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Japan spends 3.3% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
Geography
see 59.4 times more coastline
Puerto Rico has a total of 501 km of coastline. In Japan, that number is 29,751 km.
Safety
be 98.4% less likely to be murdered
Puerto Rico has a homicide rate of 14.6 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Japan, that number is 0.2 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 78.4% less likely to die in a road accident
In Puerto Rico, road accidents kill 12.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Japan, they kill 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 38.0% more home broadband
Puerto Rico has 28.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Japan has 38.6 as of 2023.
live with 87.5% more strain on fresh water
Puerto Rico withdraws 20% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Japan withdraws 37% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 62.7% more CO2
Puerto Rico emits 4.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Japan emits 7.8 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), The World Factbook (2022), World Health Organization (2024), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021). How we calculate this
Compare further: Puerto Rico vs. Japan
Japan: At a glance
How big is Japan compared to Puerto Rico? See an in-depth size comparison.