Local time--:--:--Basseterre ·

North America / Caribbean · Card 030

St Kitts and Nevis

St Kitts and Nevis is a country in Caribbean. Its capital is Basseterre.

Find St Kitts and Nevis

● Capital · Gold highlights this card’s area.
Map: Natural Earth. Boundaries show geographic context, not a position on sovereignty. Small islands may use enlarged markers.

At a glance

Capital: Basseterre
Languages: English
Currency: Eastern Caribbean dollar (XCD)
Population: 46,9222025 · World Bank
Area: 261 km²100.77 square miles
Independence: 1983from the UK

St Kitts and Nevis in context

North America and its surrounding regions. The dot marks Basseterre; the mapped territory is highlighted in gold.

Natural Earth · locator map

Geography & languages

Physical geography

Volcanic with mountainous interiors.

Languages

Languages used in public life include English.

Location

Caribbean, islands in the Caribbean Sea, about one-third of the way from Puerto Rico to Trinidad and Tobago.

Flag

Divided diagonally from the lower left side by a broad black band with two five-pointed white stars; the black band is edged in yellow; the upper triangle is green, and the lower is red

Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · Government of St Kitts and Nevis · economic sectors

History & independence

British and French colonization established plantation economies based on enslaved labor. Internal self-government expanded in 1967. Following Anguilla’s separation, Saint Kitts and Nevis became independent from Britain on 19 September 1983. Nevis retains its own local governmental institutions within the federation.

1967
Associated-state status expands internal self-government
1983
Independence from Britain
2005
Commercial sugar production ends

Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · Government of St Kitts and Nevis · economic sectors

Economy

Main activities

Tourism, construction, financial and other services are important activities. Sugar shaped the islands’ history, but commercial sugar production ended in 2005. Citizenship-by-investment revenue is also significant to public finances.

Industry and production

tourism, cotton, salt, copra, clothing, footwear, beverages

Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · Government of St Kitts and Nevis · economic sectors

Population & economic trends

Dated World Bank observations. Population uses selected years; real GDP uses all available annual observations.

Population, 1970–2025

Thousands of people

46.92025 · thousands of people

Population estimates may be revised. Selected years are shown.

Sources: World Bank · Population

View data table

Population: source values and plotted units
Year	People	Thousands of people
1970	44,606	44.606
1980	42,850	42.850
1990	40,432	40.432
2000	45,248	45.248
2010	46,846	46.846
2020	46,870	46.870
2025	46,922	46.922

Real GDP, 1990–2025

Billions of constant 2015 US dollars

1.02025 · billions of constant 2015 US dollars

Constant prices adjust for inflation. This is total economic output, not current-dollar GDP or income per person. Missing years are left as gaps.

Sources: World Bank · Real GDP

View data table

Real GDP: source values and plotted units
Year	Constant 2015 US$	Billions of constant 2015 US dollars
1990	409,858,640	0.410
1991	402,216,051	0.402
1992	419,386,549	0.419
1993	447,913,010	0.448
1994	471,660,099	0.472
1995	497,050,235	0.497
1996	526,092,075	0.526
1997	561,992,423	0.562
1998	559,256,949	0.559
1999	577,264,388	0.577
2000	635,237,944	0.635
2001	668,609,851	0.669
2002	677,754,528	0.678
2003	651,095,767	0.651
2004	677,115,811	0.677
2005	743,018,278	0.743
2006	766,426,187	0.766
2007	771,029,360	0.771
2008	858,287,029	0.858
2009	829,064,586	0.829
2010	828,615,281	0.829
2011	842,010,736	0.842
2012	835,799,755	0.836
2013	883,668,355	0.884
2014	950,623,606	0.951
2015	957,222,222	0.957
2016	994,866,931	0.995
2017	997,065,002	0.997
2018	1,017,041,453	1.017
2019	1,046,924,639	1.047
2020	886,725,391	0.887
2021	889,985,054	0.890
2022	983,259,886	0.983
2023	1,012,966,874	1.013
2024	1,016,129,628	1.016
2025	1,043,449,133	1.043

Human development

The Human Development Index combines health, education and income. Scores range from 0 to 1.

HDI · 20230.840Very High human developmentRank 58 of 193 · 2025 report

Human Development Index over time

20100.791

20200.828

20230.840

72.1 yearsLife expectancy at birth

10.8 yearsMean schooling, adults aged 25+

The latest values refer to 2023. All historical scores use the same report edition. HDI does not describe every aspect of inequality or quality of life.

Sources: UNDP · Human Development Report 2025

Government

A federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. A Governor-General represents the monarch and a Prime Minister heads the federal government. The National Assembly is the federal legislature. Nevis has its own Island Assembly and administration.

Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · Government of St Kitts and Nevis · economic sectors

Knowledge check

Three questions about St Kitts and Nevis.

QUESTION 1 OF 3

What is the capital of St Kitts and Nevis?

Sources & notes

Sources: CIA World Factbook · archived profile · Government of St Kitts and Nevis · economic sectors

Prepared 24 September 2026. World Bank series: SP.POP.TOTL (persons) and NY.GDP.MKTP.KD (constant 2015 US dollars); downloaded 24 September 2026, provider update 13 July 2026. UNDP values use the 2025 report and 2023 observation year. These are dated statistical snapshots, not live population or economic counters.

Maps use Natural Earth geographic data. Background geography, flag descriptions and selected historical facts use archived public-domain CIA World Factbook profiles, supplemented by the sources linked above. The Factbook is no longer updated; dated statistics here come from the separately named providers.