Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Puerto Rico instead of Syria, you would:
Health
live 9.3 years longer
In Syria, the average life expectancy is 73 years (70 years for men, 75 years for women) as of 2024. In Puerto Rico, that number is 82 years (78 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024.
be 28.5% more likely to be obese
In Syria, 33.0% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Puerto Rico, that number is 42.4% of people as of 2024.
be 9.2 times more likely to die by suicide
Syria has a suicide rate of 0.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Puerto Rico, it is 5.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 55.9% less likely to be unemployed
In Syria, 13.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Puerto Rico, that number is 6.0% as of 2025.
make 38.4 times more money
Syria has a GDP per capita of $1,057 as of 2022, while in Puerto Rico, the GDP per capita is $40,620 as of 2025.
Life
be 45.0% less likely to die during childbirth
In Syria, approximately 20.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Puerto Rico, 11.0 women do as of 2023.
be 65.9% less likely to die during infancy
In Syria, approximately 17.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Puerto Rico, on the other hand, 6.0 children do as of 2022.
have 75.4% fewer children
In Syria, there are approximately 23.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Puerto Rico, there are 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 13.1% more likely to have access to electricity
In Syria, approximately 88% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 73% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Puerto Rico, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 87.3% more likely to have internet access
In Syria, approximately 46.6% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Puerto Rico, about 87.3% do as of 2022.
Geography
see 2.6 times more coastline
Syria has a total of 193 km of coastline. In Puerto Rico, that number is 501 km.
Safety
be 58.2% less likely to die in a road accident
In Syria, road accidents kill 29.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Puerto Rico, they kill 12.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 4.1 times more home broadband
Syria has 6.9 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2023. Puerto Rico has 28.0 as of 2024.
live with 84.3% less strain on fresh water
Syria withdraws 124% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Puerto Rico withdraws 20% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 3.8 times more CO2
Syria emits 1.3 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Puerto Rico emits 4.8 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: Syria vs. Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico: At a glance
How big is Puerto Rico compared to Syria? See an in-depth size comparison.