Page last modified 20 August 2023
Puerto Rico
Community
Area 13,790 square kilometres (land area 8,870 square kilometres)
Population, Census years in bold. Since 2000, economic crises and the threat of hurricanes has produced a population exodus from Puerto Rico.
45,000 (1765)
155,000 (1800)
500,000 (1850)
583,308 (1860)
784,709 (1890)
953,243 (1899)
1,118,012 (1910)
1,869,255 (1940)
2,220,000 (1950) +18.7%
2,358,000 (1960) +6.2%
2,718,000 (1970) +15.3%
3,206,000 (1980) +18.0%
3,562,000 (1990) +11.1%
3,811,000 (2000) +7.0%
3,722,000 (2010) -2.4%
3,194,000 (2020) -14.2%
Ethnicity, %
|
|
Amerindian |
Asian |
Black |
White (mainly Spanish) |
|
1899 |
|
|
6.2 |
61.8 |
|
1940 |
|
|
23.8 |
76.2 |
|
1960 |
|
|
|
79.7 |
|
2007 |
0.2 |
0.3 |
6.9 |
76.2 |
|
2015 |
0.5 |
0.2 |
12.4 |
75.8 |
Religion, %,
|
|
Christian Protestant |
Christian R C |
No religion |
|
2001 |
|
65.0 |
|
|
2014 |
33.0 |
56.0 |
8.0 |
Birth and death rates Below replacement rate = 2.1
|
|
Fertility Rate |
Birth Rate |
Infant Mortality |
Death Rate |
% Aged Under 15 |
% Aged Over 65 |
% Urban |
|
1899 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
14.6 |
|
1910 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
20.1 |
|
1920 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
21.8 |
|
1930 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
27.7 |
|
1937 |
|
|
138.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
1940 |
|
39.0 |
|
|
|
|
30.3 |
|
1950 |
|
37.0 (+28.0) |
63.0 |
9.0 |
43.3 |
3.8 |
40.5 |
|
1960 |
4.7 |
31.5 (+24.8) |
47.8 |
6.7 |
42.7 |
5.2 |
44.2 |
|
1970 |
3.1 |
26.8 (+20.1) |
|
6.7 |
36.5 |
6.5 |
58.1 |
|
1980 |
2.6 |
23.0 (+16.6) |
19.1 |
6.4 |
31.6 |
7.9 |
67.8 |
|
1990 |
2.2 |
19.0 (+11.7) |
14.0 |
7.3 |
27.2 |
9.7 |
92.9 |
|
2000 |
2.0 |
16.0 (+8.5) |
9.7 |
7.5 |
23.6 |
11.3 |
94.4 |
|
2010 |
1.6 |
11.3 (+3.5) |
8.2 |
7.8 |
20.6 |
13.0 |
93.8 |
|
2015 |
1.4 |
9.0 (+0.5) |
|
8.5 |
18.7 |
16.0 |
93.6 |
|
2017 |
1.1 |
7.3 (-1.6) |
|
8.9 |
|
|
|
|
2018 |
|
|
|
|
16.8 |
18.7 |
93.6 |
Life expectancy,
64.8 (1952); 63.0 (M), 67.0 (F)
68.7 (1960); 66.1 (M), 71.5 (F)
71.5 (1970); 68.3 (M), 74.9 (F)
73.7 (1980); 70.4 (M), 77.2 (F)
74.2 (1990); 69.9 (M), 78.7 (F)
76.7 (2000); 72.3 (M), 80.9 (F)
78.4 (2010); 74.5 (M), 82.5 (F)
80.2 (2020); 76.6 (M), 83.6 (F)
Population of principal cities, 1,000s
|
|
Bayamon |
Caguas |
Carolina |
Ponce |
SAN JUAN1 |
MA |
|
1940 |
15 |
24 |
166 |
65 |
169 |
|
|
1950 |
|
|
|
99 |
357 |
|
|
1960 |
|
32 |
|
115 |
433 |
|
|
1970 |
|
|
|
131 |
|
|
|
1980 |
196 |
118 |
|
189 |
434 |
|
|
1990 |
220 |
133 |
178 |
188 |
438 |
|
|
1996 |
232 |
140 |
188 |
190 |
434 |
|
|
2005 |
227 |
144 |
192 |
186 |
433 |
|
|
2010 |
|
143 |
177 |
166 |
395 |
2,350 |
|
2015 |
239 |
|
|
|
|
|
1San Juan was founded in 1511 by Ponce de Leon.
Wealth; Gross Domestic Product (nominal values)
|
|
GDP, US$ million |
Total GDP, % of USA |
GDP per capita, US$ |
GDP per capita % of USA |
|
1948 |
600 |
0.27 |
275 |
18.03 |
|
1960 |
1,692 |
0.31 |
717 |
23.84 |
|
1965 |
2,525 |
0.34 |
1,110 |
29.00 |
|
1970 |
5,035 |
0.48 |
1,850 |
35.26 |
|
1975 |
8,200 |
0.50 |
2,740 |
35.04 |
|
1980 |
14,436 |
0.52 |
4,500 |
35.72 |
|
1985 |
20,290 |
0.48 |
6,000 |
32.84 |
|
1990 |
30,600 |
0.53 |
8,650 |
36.11 |
|
1995 |
42,650 |
0.58 |
11,580 |
38.51 |
|
2000 |
61,700 |
0.62 |
16,200 |
44.44 |
|
2005 |
83,900 |
0.64 |
22,000 |
49.65 |
|
2010 |
98,400 |
0.66 |
26,440 |
54.66 |
|
2015 |
103,675 |
0.57 |
27,940 |
49.71 |
|
2016 |
105,000 |
0.57 |
|
|
GDP by primary sector
|
|
Agriculture % GDP |
Agriculture % employed |
Industry % GDP |
Industry % employed |
Services % GDP |
Services % employed |
|
1940 |
|
40.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
1950 |
|
24.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
1960 |
|
20.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
1970 |
|
14.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
1980 |
|
4.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
1990 |
1.6 |
3.2 |
44.4 |
20.8 |
54.0 |
60.5 |
|
2010 |
1.0 |
2.1 |
45.0 |
19.0 |
54.0 |
79.0 |
|
2016 |
0.8 |
|
50.2 |
|
48.5 |
|
Communications
Language, Official; English and Spanish.�
English only, 5.8% (2015)
Spanish, 94.1% (2015)
Literacy
Under 25% (1899)
89.1% (1988); 89.7% (M), 88.5% (F)
94.1% (2002); 93.9% (M), 94.4% (F)
93.3% 92015); 92.8% (M), 93.8% (F)
Physical communications � roads
|
|
Roads (km) |
Surfaced (km) |
Motor vehicles |
Cars |
Commercial Vehicles |
Railways (km) |
|
1938 |
2,211 |
|
|
|
|
618 |
|
1944 |
2,987 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1947 |
3,300 |
|
46,157 |
27,408 |
|
|
|
1952 |
6,070 |
|
76,750 |
|
|
|
|
1962 |
6,926 |
|
215,889 |
|
|
|
|
1964 |
|
|
274,000 |
|
|
|
|
1979 |
|
11,000 |
1,035,200 |
|
|
|
|
1986 |
9,351 |
|
1,385,300 |
1,175,200 |
201,100 |
|
|
1992 |
|
21,772 |
1,650,709 |
|
|
96* |
|
2000 |
23,800 |
|
2,082,090 |
|
|
|
|
2005 |
25,640 |
|
2,382,373 |
|
|
|
|
2008 |
26,670 |
25,337 |
2,661,000 |
|
|
96 |
|
2012 |
26,862 |
|
2,990,000 |
|
|
|
|
2016 |
|
|
|
2,010,000 |
|
|
*By the 1960s road competition had
resulted in the closure of almost all railways; a few are preserved as tourist
lines.
Urban metro systems, kilometres
San Juan, (opened 2004)
17.2 km (2010)
Electronic communications, TV broadcasting began 1954
(colour from 1968)
|
|
Telephones 1,000s |
Mobile Telephones |
Radios 1,000s |
Televisions |
PCs |
Internet Users |
|
1938 |
14 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1940 |
|
|
48 |
|
|
|
|
1944 |
22 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1952 |
39 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1962 |
112 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1975 |
243 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1980 |
413 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1987 |
|
3,917 |
|
|
|
|
|
1990 |
982 |
20,370 |
2,450 |
930,000 |
|
|
|
1995 |
|
287,000 |
2,636 |
1,000,000 |
|
|
|
2000 |
1,299 |
927,000 |
2,800 |
|
|
200,000 |
|
2005 |
1,218 |
2,934,000 |
|
|
|
925,000 |
|
2010 |
892 |
|
|
|
|
1,300,000 |
|
2016 |
813 |
3,227,300 |
|
|
|
2,874,000 |
Tourism: Visitors to Puerto Rico,
394,000 (1962)
1,872,000 (1987)
2,560,000 (1990)
3,131,000 (1995)
3,341,000 (2000)
3,686,000 (2005)