Quality of life comparison
If you lived in New Zealand instead of Puerto Rico, you would:
Health
be 19.7% less likely to be obese
In Puerto Rico, 42.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In New Zealand, that number is 34.0% of people as of 2024.
be 2.2 times more likely to die by suicide
Puerto Rico has a suicide rate of 5.4 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In New Zealand, it is 11.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 15.2% less likely to be unemployed
In Puerto Rico, 6.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In New Zealand, that number is 5.1% as of 2025.
make 22.1% more money
Puerto Rico has a GDP per capita of $40,620 as of 2025, while in New Zealand, the GDP per capita is $49,591 as of 2025.
Life
be 36.4% 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 New Zealand, 7.0 women do as of 2023.
be 33.8% 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 New Zealand, on the other hand, 4.0 children do as of 2024.
have 93.5% more children
In Puerto Rico, there are approximately 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In New Zealand, there are 11.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 22.0% more on education
Puerto Rico spends 4.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. New Zealand spends 5.2% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Geography
see 30.2 times more coastline
Puerto Rico has a total of 501 km of coastline. In New Zealand, that number is 15,134 km.
Safety
be 90.0% less likely to be murdered
Puerto Rico has a homicide rate of 14.6 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In New Zealand, that number is 1.5 per 100,000 as of 2022.
be 47.2% less likely to die in a road accident
In Puerto Rico, road accidents kill 12.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In New Zealand, they kill 6.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 35.9% more home broadband
Puerto Rico has 28.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. New Zealand has 38.0 as of 2024.
live with 58.8% less strain on fresh water
Puerto Rico withdraws 20% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. New Zealand withdraws 8% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 24.7% more CO2
Puerto Rico emits 4.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. New Zealand emits 6.0 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. New Zealand
New Zealand: At a glance
How big is New Zealand compared to Puerto Rico? See an in-depth size comparison.