Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in New Caledonia instead of Puerto Rico, you would:

Health

live 3.0 years less

In Puerto Rico, the average life expectancy is 82 years (78 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In New Caledonia, that number is 79 years (76 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.

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Economy

be 86.5% more likely to be unemployed

In Puerto Rico, 6.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In New Caledonia, that number is 11.2% as of 2025.

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make 28.1% less money

Puerto Rico has a GDP per capita of $40,620 as of 2025, while in New Caledonia, the GDP per capita is $29,213 as of 2024.

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Life

be 17.2% 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 New Caledonia, on the other hand, 5.0 children do as of 2020.

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have 2.5 times more children

In Puerto Rico, there are approximately 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In New Caledonia, there are 14.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Geography

see 4.5 times more coastline

Puerto Rico has a total of 501 km of coastline. In New Caledonia, that number is 2,254 km.

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Infrastructure

find 30.8% less home broadband

Puerto Rico has 28.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. New Caledonia has 19.4 as of 2022.

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Environment

emit 3.5 times more CO2

Puerto Rico emits 4.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. New Caledonia emits 17.1 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), The World Factbook (2020–2022). How we calculate this

Compare further: Puerto Rico vs. New Caledonia

Cost of Living Comparison · 7 categories - 2026 data
New Caledonia is 14.7% more expensive than Puerto Rico overall
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Size Comparison · See true size
Puerto Rico is about 2 times smaller than New Caledonia.
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Moving from Puerto Rico to New Caledonia · Cost, visas & climate
Compare cost of living, salary and climate.
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New Caledonia: At a glance

New Caledonia is a sovereign country in Australia-Oceania, with a total land area of approximately 18,275 sq km. Settled by both Britain and France during the first half of the 19th century, the island became a French possession in 1853. It served as a penal colony for four decades after 1864. Agitation for independence during the 1980s and early 1990s ended in the 1998 Noumea Accord, which over a period of 15 to 20 years will transfer an increasing amount of governing responsibility from France to New Caledonia. The agreement also commits France to conduct a referendum between 2014 and 2018 to decide whether New Caledonia should assume full sovereignty and independence.
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How big is New Caledonia compared to Puerto Rico? See an in-depth size comparison.

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