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

Health

live 2.2 years longer

In Puerto Rico, the average life expectancy is 82 years (78 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In Sweden, that number is 84 years (83 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2024.

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be 58.7% less likely to be obese

In Puerto Rico, 42.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Sweden, that number is 17.5% of people as of 2024.

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be 2.6 times more likely to die by suicide

Puerto Rico has a suicide rate of 5.4 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Sweden, it is 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

make 55.4% more money

Puerto Rico has a GDP per capita of $40,620 as of 2025, while in Sweden, the GDP per capita is $63,133 as of 2025.

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be 45.1% more likely to be unemployed

In Puerto Rico, 6.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Sweden, that number is 8.7% as of 2025.

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Life

be 63.6% 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 Sweden, 4.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 66.9% 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 Sweden, on the other hand, 2.0 children do as of 2024.

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have 63.2% more children

In Puerto Rico, there are approximately 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Sweden, there are 9.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 71.4% more on education

Puerto Rico spends 4.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Sweden spends 7.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.

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Geography

see 6.4 times more coastline

Puerto Rico has a total of 501 km of coastline. In Sweden, that number is 3,218 km.

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Safety

be 92.1% less likely to be murdered

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

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be 83.2% less likely to die in a road accident

In Puerto Rico, road accidents kill 12.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Sweden, they kill 2.1 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 45.1% more home broadband

Puerto Rico has 28.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Sweden has 40.6 as of 2024.

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live with 81.7% less strain on fresh water

Puerto Rico withdraws 20% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Sweden withdraws 4% as of 2022.

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Environment

emit 25.9% less CO2

Puerto Rico emits 4.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Sweden emits 3.6 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

Sweden: At a glance

Sweden is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 410,335 sq km. A military power during the 17th century, Sweden has not participated in any war for almost two centuries. An armed neutrality was preserved in both world wars. Sweden's long-successful economic formula of a capitalist system intermixed with substantial welfare elements was challenged in the 1990s by high unemployment and in 2000-02 and 2009 by the global economic downturns, but fiscal discipline over the past several years has allowed the country to weather economic vagaries. Sweden joined the EU in 1995, but the public rejected the introduction of the euro in a 2003 referendum.
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How big is Sweden compared to Puerto Rico? See an in-depth size comparison.

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