Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
The Bahamas is 26% bigger than Jamaica
Bahamas: 13,878 km² (2024) · Jamaica: 10,991 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
The Bahamas’ coastline is 3.5 times as long as Jamaica’s
Bahamas: 3,542 km (2026 edition) · Jamaica: 1,022 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Jamaica’s highest peak towers 2,192 m above the Bahamas’
Bahamas: 64 m (2026 edition) · Jamaica: 2,256 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 39% of Jamaica, versus 1.3% of the Bahamas
Bahamas: 1.3% (2024) · Jamaica: 39% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Jamaica has 7 times as many people as the Bahamas
Bahamas: 403,033 (2025) · Jamaica: 2.84 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Jamaica is 6.5 times as densely populated as the Bahamas
Bahamas: 40 per km² (2025) · Jamaica: 262 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Jamaica are 2.6 cm taller than in the Bahamas
Bahamas: 174.4 cm (2019) · Jamaica: 177 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Jamaica are 0.9 cm taller than in the Bahamas
Bahamas: 163.5 cm (2019) · Jamaica: 164.3 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in the Bahamas is 2.9 years older than in Jamaica
Bahamas: 34.6 years (2023) · Jamaica: 31.7 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
The Bahamas and Jamaica are practically level
Bahamas: 1.37 children per woman (2024) · Jamaica: 1.35 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
12% of people in the Bahamas are 65 or older, versus 8.6% in Jamaica
Bahamas: 12.1% (2025) · Jamaica: 8.6% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
The Bahamas hosts 2.3 times as many refugees per resident as Jamaica
Bahamas: 0.025 per 1,000 (2025) · Jamaica: 0.011 per 1,000 (2022)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Bahamas: no data · Jamaica: 0 (2026)
How many official languages?
Jamaica has 2 official languages, the Bahamas 1
Bahamas: 1 (2026) · Jamaica: 2 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Jamaica’s economy is 43% larger than the Bahamas’
Bahamas: $15.8 billion (2024) · Jamaica: $22.7 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
The Bahamas produces 3.1 times as much per person as Jamaica
Bahamas: Int$41,258 (2024) · Jamaica: Int$13,291 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Bahamas: no data · Jamaica: 39.9 (2021)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
Bahamas: no data · Jamaica: 1.4% (2021)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 9.2% in the Bahamas, versus 3.3% in Jamaica
Bahamas: 9.2% (2025) · Jamaica: 3.3% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Bahamas: no data · Jamaica: 1.4% (2025)
How much does the central government collect in tax?
Jamaica’s central government collects 24% of GDP in tax, the Bahamas’ 17%
Bahamas: 17.3% (2024) · Jamaica: 23.7% (2020)
How expensive is it?
The Bahamas’ price level (US = 100) is 1.6× Jamaica’s
Bahamas: 96% (2024) · Jamaica: 60% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The Bahamas spends 4.3 times as much on health per person as Jamaica
Bahamas: $2,262 (2023) · Jamaica: $520 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in the Bahamas live 3.1 years longer than in Jamaica
Bahamas: 74.7 years (2024) · Jamaica: 71.6 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Jamaica is 48% more likely to die before turning one than in the Bahamas
Bahamas: 11.1 per 1,000 (2024) · Jamaica: 16.4 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
The Bahamas has 4.1 times as many doctors per person as Jamaica
Bahamas: 1.9 per 1,000 (2017) · Jamaica: 0.5 per 1,000 (2023)
How many hospital beds are there?
The Bahamas has 32% more hospital beds per person than Jamaica
Bahamas: 2.2 per 1,000 (2023) · Jamaica: 1.7 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in the Bahamas is 20% higher than in Jamaica
Bahamas: 2.4 per 100k (2023) · Jamaica: 2 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
48% of adults in the Bahamas are obese, versus 36% in Jamaica
Bahamas: 48.4% (2024) · Jamaica: 35.7% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
17% of adults in the Bahamas smoke, versus 12% in Jamaica
Bahamas: 17.3% (2024) · Jamaica: 11.5% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
Bahamas: no data · Jamaica: 6.31 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in the Bahamas drink 86% more alcohol than in Jamaica
Bahamas: 8.1 litres (2023) · Jamaica: 4.4 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
The Bahamas has 72% more meat per person than Jamaica
Bahamas: 114.9 kg (2023) · Jamaica: 67 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Jamaica has 220 kcal more food per person per day than the Bahamas
Bahamas: 2,672 kcal (2023) · Jamaica: 2,892 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Bahamas: no data · Jamaica: 1,963 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in the Bahamas went to school 2.9 years longer than in Jamaica
Bahamas: 12.8 years (2023) · Jamaica: 10 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
The Bahamas welcomed 5.3 times as many tourists per resident as Jamaica (2019)
Bahamas: 4.66 (2024) · Jamaica: 0.87 (2022)
How many World Heritage sites?
Jamaica has 2 more World Heritage sites than the Bahamas (2 against 0)
Bahamas: 0 (2026) · Jamaica: 2 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
Jamaica has won 94 Olympic medals, the Bahamas 16
Bahamas: 16 (2026 edition) · Jamaica: 94 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
92% of people in the Bahamas are online, versus 90% in Jamaica
Bahamas: 92% (2024) · Jamaica: 90% (2024)
How fast is home internet?
Home internet in the Bahamas is 21% faster than in Jamaica
Bahamas: 167 Mbps (2026) · Jamaica: 138 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
100% of people in the Bahamas have electricity, versus 98% in Jamaica
Bahamas: 100% (2024) · Jamaica: 97.7% (2024)
How many live in cities?
81% of people in the Bahamas live in cities, versus 59% in Jamaica
Bahamas: 81% (2025) · Jamaica: 59% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Jamaica has 118 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, the Bahamas 97
Bahamas: 97 (2024) · Jamaica: 118 (2024)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the Bahamas fly 57 times as many passengers per resident as those from Jamaica
Bahamas: 3.64 (2023) · Jamaica: 0.06 (2018)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 57% of Jamaica, but only 51% of the Bahamas
Bahamas: 50.9% (2024) · Jamaica: 56.5% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in the Bahamas emits 2.6 times as much CO₂ as someone in Jamaica
Bahamas: 7.6 t (2024) · Jamaica: 3 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
13% of Jamaica’s electricity is renewable, versus 0.9% in the Bahamas
Bahamas: 0.9% (2024) · Jamaica: 12.6% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in Jamaica carries 3.4 times as much fine dust as in the Bahamas
Bahamas: 5.2 µg/m³ (2024) · Jamaica: 17.6 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 54% more likely to be murdered in Jamaica than in the Bahamas
Bahamas: 32.2 per 100k (2022) · Jamaica: 49.4 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Jamaica are 4% deadlier than in the Bahamas
Bahamas: 30.5 per 100k (2023) · Jamaica: 31.6 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Jamaica is on average 0.4 °C warmer than the Bahamas
Bahamas: 26°C (2016–2025 avg) · Jamaica: 26.4°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Jamaica gets 18% more rain than the Bahamas
Bahamas: 934 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Jamaica: 1,102 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Between them
People, goods and passports that cross from one to the other
Quick answers
Is the Bahamas bigger than Jamaica?
The Bahamas is larger. The Bahamas is 26% bigger than Jamaica.
Which has more people, the Bahamas or Jamaica?
Jamaica has 7 times as many people as the Bahamas (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, the Bahamas or Jamaica?
People in the Bahamas live 3.1 years longer than in Jamaica. Life expectancy at birth is 74.7 years in the Bahamas and 71.6 in Jamaica.
Are people taller in the Bahamas or Jamaica?
Men in Jamaica are 2.6 cm taller than in the Bahamas (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).