Geography
Climate: Saint Helena: tropical marine.
CIA 2026
Data as of May 5, 2026
Saint Helena
AfricaRegional Champion
Saint Helena tops Africa for life expectancy. How does it compare to its neighbors?
Saint Helena tops Africa for life expectancy. Neighbors look to it as a regional benchmark. How does it compare to its neighbors?
-15.9, -5.7 - Africa
Area
394 km²
Pop.
7.9K
Stats
28
Reality brief
Saint Helena is a country in Africa with a population of 7.9K and an area of 394 km².
Short factual summary generated from the same country data used in game rounds.
Core numbers
Stats worth knowing
Fast scan first, deep dive later.
Life Expectancy
76.8 years#97globally
Average number of years a newborn would be expected to live if current mortality patterns stayed the same, from Our World in Data.
CO2 Per Capita
2.2 t/person/yr#130globally
Annual carbon dioxide emissions in tonnes per person, from Our World in Data using the latest available country values in TerraBrawl.
Internet Users (%)
37.6%#194globally
The percentage of people who have used the internet in the last 3 months.
Median Age
50.5 years#3globally
The age that splits the population in half: half are younger, half are older. UN WPP estimate as of 1 July 2023.
Electricity Carbon Intensity
1.0K gCO2/kWh#4globally
Power-sector CO2 emissions per kilowatt-hour of electricity generation.
Country briefing
Grounded facts about Saint Helena
A quick real-world briefing before you dive deeper into rankings, surprises, and matchups.
Culture
Major languages include English.
CIA 2026
Identity
Formal name: Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha.
CIA 2026
Top stats
Where They Stand Out
The strongest source-backed stats before the deeper data table.
Reality checks
Did You Know?
The stats that tend to surprise players in real rounds.
Only ranks #208 in electric generating capacity
#2085.0K kWElectric Generating Capacity
Installed electricity generating capacity in kilowatts from the frozen public-domain CIA World Factbook snapshot.
Only ranks #208 in irrigated land
#2080 km²Irrigated Land
Irrigated land area from CIA World Factbook.
Only ranks #225 in land border length
#2250 kmLand Border Length
Total length of land borders with neighboring countries from the frozen public-domain CIA World Factbook snapshot.
Only ranks #209 in airports
#2092.0Airports
Large, medium, and small airport records by country from the open OurAirports dataset.
Compared with the region
How Saint Helena Compares
Country vs continent vs world averages
Saint Helena
Africa avg
World avg
Internet Users
The percentage of people who have used the internet in the last 3 months.
- Country
- 37.6%
- Region avg
- 43.08%
- World avg
- 70.29%
Saint Hele…37.6%
Africa43.08%
World70.29%
-47% below worldWB 2023
Think you can guess which countries rank higher?
Play this countryFactbook notes
About Saint Helena
Country briefing
Saint Helena is a British Overseas Territory off the coast of Africa in the South Atlantic Ocean, and it consists of Saint Helena, Ascension Island, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha.
Read the full Factbook note
Saint Helena is a British Overseas Territory off the coast of Africa in the South Atlantic Ocean, and it consists of Saint Helena, Ascension Island, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha.
Saint Helena: The island was uninhabited when the Portuguese first discovered it in 1502, and the British garrisoned troops on Saint Helena during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. During the Anglo-Boer War in South Africa, several thousand Boer prisoners were confined on the island between 1900 and 1903.
Saint Helena is one of the most remote populated places in the world. The British Government committed to building an airport on Saint Helena in 2005. After more than a decade of delays and construction, a commercial air service to South Africa via Namibia was inaugurated in 2017. The weekly service to Saint Helena from Johannesburg via Windhoek in Namibia takes just over six hours (including the refueling stop in Windhoek) and replaces the mail ship that had made a five-day journey to the island every three weeks.
Ascension Island: This barren and uninhabited island was discovered and named by the Portuguese in 1503. The British garrisoned the island in 1815 to prevent a rescue of NAPOLEON from Saint Helena. It served as a provisioning station for the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron on anti-slavery patrol. The island remained under Admiralty control until 1922, when it became a dependency of Saint Helena. During World War II, the UK permitted the US to construct an airfield on Ascension in support of transatlantic flights to Africa and anti-submarine operations in the South Atlantic. In the 1960s, the island became an important space tracking station for the US. In 1982, Ascension was an essential staging area for British forces during the Falklands War. It remains a critical refueling point in the air-bridge from the UK to the South Atlantic.
The island hosts one of four dedicated ground antennas that assist in the operation of the Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation system -- the others are on Diego Garcia (British Indian Ocean Territory), Kwajalein (Marshall Islands), and at Cape Canaveral, Florida (US). NASA and the US Air Force also operate a Meter-Class Autonomous Telescope (MCAT) on Ascension as part of the deep space surveillance system for tracking orbital debris, which can be a hazard to spacecraft and astronauts.
Tristan da Cunha: The island group consists of Tristan da Cunha, Nightingale, Inaccessible, and Gough Islands. Tristan da Cunha, named after its Portuguese discoverer (1506), was garrisoned by the British in 1816 to prevent any attempt to rescue NAPOLEON from Saint Helena. Gough and Inaccessible Islands have been designated World Heritage Sites. South Africa leases a site for a meteorological station on Gough Island.
Geography & Climate6 facts
- Location
- islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, about midway between South America and Africa; Ascension Island lies 1,300 km (800 mi) northwest of Saint Helena; Tristan da Cunha lies 4,300 km (2,700 mi) southwest of Saint Helena
- Climate
- Saint Helena: tropical marine; mild, tempered by trade winds Ascension Island: tropical marine; mild, semi-arid Tristan da Cunha: temperate marine; mild, tempered by trade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena)
- Terrain
- the islands of this group are of volcanic origin associated with the Atlantic Mid-Ocean Ridge Saint Helena: rugged, volcanic; small scattered plateaus and plains Ascension: surface covered by lava flows and cinder cones of 44 dormant volcanoes; terrain rises to the east Tristan da Cunha: sheer cliffs line the coastline of the nearly circular island; the flanks of the central volcanic peak are deeply dissected; narrow coastal plain lies between The Peak and the coastal cliffs
- Natural Resources
- fish, lobster
- Natural Hazards
- active volcanism volcanism: the volcanoes of Tristan da Cunha (2,060 m) and Nightingale Island (365 m) are active
- Size Comparison
- slightly more than twice the size of Washington, D.C.
People & Culture4 facts
- Languages
- English
- Religions
- Anglican 63.2%, unspecified 11.4%, no religion 9%, Jehovah's Witness 3.8%, Baptist 2.3%, Salvation Army 2%, Roman Catholic 2.2%, Seventh Day Adventist 1.9%, New Apostolic 1.6%, other Christian 1.4%, other 1.1% (2021 est.)
- Ethnic Groups
- St. Helena 82.1%, UK 7.6%, South Africa 3.6%, Ascension 2.8%, other 3.9% (2021 est.)
- Major Cities
- 1,000 JAMESTOWN (capital) (2018)
Government & History9 facts
- Government Type
- parliamentary democracy
- Capital
- Jamestown
- Capital Coordinates
- 15 56 S, 5 43 W
- Capital Timezone
- UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
- Official Name
- Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha
- Name Origin
- on the feast day of Saint Helena in 1502, Spanish navigator Joao da NOVA (sailing for Portugal) sighted and named the island that now bears the saint's name; da NOVA originally named Ascension "Conception Island" in honor of the Virgin Mary, but Portuguese navigator Afonso de ALBUQUERQUE later found the island on the feast day of the Ascension in 1508 and renamed it; Portuguese explorer Tristao da CUNHA sighted the third island in 1506 and named it after himself (the name was later anglicized)
- Independence
- none (overseas territory of the UK)
- National Symbols
- Saint Helena plover (wire bird)
- National Anthem
- "God Save the King"
Economy & Trade7 facts
- Overview
- upper middle-income, British Atlantic Ocean territorial economy; native (but pegged to British pound) currency user on 2 of 3 islands; significant UK financial support; unique land/farming commune structure; military-related economic activity; sport fishing locale
- Industries
- construction, crafts (furniture, lacework, fancy woodwork), fishing, collectible postage stamps
- Agricultural Products
- coffee, corn, potatoes, vegetables; fish, lobster; livestock; timber
- Export Partners
- Singapore 33%, USA 16%, Japan 10%, Turkey 10%, Senegal 8% (2023)
- Export Commodities
- fish, shellfish, natural gas, trucks, construction vehicles (2023)
- Import Partners
- UK 34%, Greece 26%, Spain 16%, South Africa 15%, Namibia 2% (2023)
- Import Commodities
- refined petroleum, baked goods, plastic products, vehicle parts/accessories, air pumps (2023)
Infrastructure & Defense2 facts
- Energy Mix
- fossil fuels: 100% of total installed capacity (2023 est.)
- Broadcast Media
- Saint Helena: no local TV station; 2 local radio stations, one of which is relayed to Ascension Island; satellite TV stations rebroadcast terrestrially Ascension Island: no local TV station; 1 local radio station and receives relays of broadcasts from radio station on Saint Helena; broadcasts from the British Forces Broadcasting Service (BFBS) available, as well as US military TV Tristan da Cunha: 1 local radio station and receives BFBS TV and radio broadcasts
Source:World Factbook archive 2026
Data vault
Deep Dive
Every tracked stat, grouped for fast scanning.
Demographics6 statsBest: #3
Health & Survival1 statsBest: #97
Life Expectancy
Land & Sea3 statsBest: #121
Highest Elevation
2.1K m#121
Lowest Elevation
0 m#173
Land Border Length
0 km#225
Environment2 statsBest: #130
CO2 Per Capita
Irrigated Land
0 km²#208
Technology3 statsBest: #135
Energy1 statsBest: #208
Electric Generating Capacity
5.0K kW#208
Infrastructure1 statsBest: #209
Airports
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Saint Helena
#97 in Life Expectancy
Average number of years a newborn would be expected to live if current mortality patterns stayed the same, from Our World in Data.
Top half globally
76.8 years
Frequently Asked Questions about Saint Helena
What is the population of Saint Helena?
Saint Helena has a population of 7.9K, ranking #221 globally by population.
What continent is Saint Helena in?
Saint Helena is located in Africa. It has an area of 394 km².
What is Saint Helena known for in global statistics?
Saint Helena ranks particularly high in Life Expectancy (#97), CO2 Per Capita (#130), Internet Users (%) (#194).