Constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
One of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, with its own parliament and government. Defense, foreign affairs and nationality are matters for the Kingdom.
National Identity
- Official name
- Country of Sint Maarten
- Official name (in Dutch)
- Land Sint Maarten
- Name etymology
explorer Christopher COLUMBUS named the island in 1493 after Saint MARTIN of Tours because he visited on 11 November, the saint's feast day
Sources:- Explanatory Memorandum ↗ - Government of Sint Maarten
- The World Factbook: Sint Maarten - CIA
- Coat of arms
- National flag
- National anthem
- O Sweet Saint Martin’s Land1:01
- Title
- O Sweet Saint Martin’s Land
- Lyrics
- English
1Where over the world, say where, You find an island there, So lovely small with nations free With people French and Dutch Though talking English much, As thee Saint Martin in the sea?
ChorusO sweet Saint Martin’s Land So bright by beach and strand With sailors on the sea and harbors free Where the chains of mountains green Variously in sunshine sheen
Oh I love thy Paradise, Nature beauty fairly nice Oh I love thy Paradise, Nature beauty fairly nice
2How pretty between all green Flamboyants beaming gleam Of flowers red by sunlight set Thy cows and sheep and goats In meadows or on the roads Thy donkeys keen I can’t forget
O sweet Saint Martin’s Land3Thy useful birds in white Their morn and evening flight Like aircrafts-wings in unity Their coming down for food Then turning back to roost Bring home to me their harmony
O sweet Saint Martin’s Land4Saint Martin I like thy name In which Columbus fame And memories of old are closed For me a great delight Thy Southern Cross the night May God the Lord protect thy coast!
O sweet Saint Martin’s Land
- Official name:Explanatory Memorandum ↗ - Government of Sint Maarten
- Official name:The World Factbook: Sint Maarten - CIA
- National anthem:nationalanthems.info ↗
- National anthem:Recording credit
Geography
- Location
- Caribbean, located in the Leeward Islands (northern) group; Dutch part of the island of Saint Martin in the Caribbean Sea; Sint Maarten lies east of the US Virgin Islands
- Total area
- 34 km²
- Land area
- 34 km²
- Water area
- 0.00 km²
- Land borders
- 16 km(1 country)
- Saint Martin (French part)
- 16 km(France)
Source:- The World Factbook: Sint Maarten - CIA
- Coastline
- 58.9 km(
for the entire island, shared with Saint Martin ) - Terrain
Low, hilly terrain, volcanic origin - Highest point
- 383 m250 m SW of Mount Flagstaff summit
- Lowest point
- 0 mCaribbean Sea
- Climate
Tropical marine climate, ameliorated by northeast trade winds, results in moderate temperatures; average rainfall of 150 cm/year; hurricane season stretches from July to November - Avg. temperature
- 26.2 °C
- Avg. daily range
- 25.5 to 26.8 °C
- Annual precipitation
- 905 mm
Temperature °CMeanDaily rangePrecipitation mmMonthly climate normals Month Avg. high, °C Mean, °C Avg. low, °C Precipitation, mm January 25.6 25 24.4 41 February 25.3 24.7 24.1 32 March 25.3 24.8 24.2 32 April 25.9 25.3 24.7 43 May 26.7 26.2 25.5 74 June 27.5 26.9 26.2 60 July 27.7 27.1 26.3 84 August 28 27.4 26.5 97 September 28.1 27.4 26.5 130 October 27.8 27.1 26.3 138 November 27.1 26.5 25.7 115 December 26.3 25.7 25 60 Country-wide averages over 1991–2020.
Sources:- The World Factbook: Sint Maarten - CIA
- Climate Change Knowledge Portal (ERA5 reanalysis) ↗ - World Bank
- Weather
- Loading
- Land use2023
- Forest8.8%Other91.2%
- Forest
- 300 hectares (8.8%)
- Other land
- 3,100 hectares (91.2%)
Source:
- Location, Land borders, Coastline, Terrain, Highest point, Lowest point, Climate:The World Factbook: Sint Maarten - CIA
- Climate:Climate Change Knowledge Portal (ERA5 reanalysis) ↗ - World Bank
- Land use:FAOSTAT Land Use domain ↗ - FAO
Demographics
- Population change2026
- +1.19% per year+524 people/yearWorld Rank84thof 237
- Birth rate
- 8.9 per 1,000 population
- Death rate
- 8.7 per 1,000 population
- Net migration rate
- +10.9 per 1,000 population
- 2026
- 42.0 yearsWorld Rank46thof 237
- Age structure2026
- 0-14 years14.5%15-64 years70.4%65 years +15.1%
- Share aged 65 and over
- 15.1%
- Share aged under 18
- 18.4%
- Total dependency ratio
- 42
- Youth dependency ratio
- 21
- Elderly dependency ratio
- 21
- Sex ratio
- 0.94 male / female
MaleAgeFemalePopulation by age group, % of total population Age Male Female 80+ 0.9% 1.0% 70-79 3.6% 3.7% 60-69 6.8% 7.2% 50-59 7.7% 8.8% 40-49 6.8% 8.0% 30-39 6.0% 7.2% 20-29 5.7% 5.8% 10-19 6.5% 5.6% 0-9 4.7% 4.2% - 2026
- 0.68 below the replacement level for Sint Maarten ()1.42 births per womanreplacement 2.10123World Rank190thof 237
- 0.68 daughters per woman0.32 below replacement, long-run each generation smaller than the lastreplacement 1.000.511.5
- 2026
- +0.3 per 1,000 populationfor every 1,000 people, 0.3 more births than deaths a year
- 2026
- +10.9 per 1,000 population
- Urbanization2026
- 100.0% live in cities44,447 urban residents
- Largest settlements2017latest available
- Lower Prince's Quarter, Cul de Sac, Cole Bay, Little BayRankSettlementPopulation (2017 estimate)1Lower Prince's Quarter10,8332Cul de Sac8,5883Cole Bay7,1944Little Bay5,5815Upper Prince's Quarter4,5956Philipsburg1,8947Simpson Bay1,1428Low Lands708Source:
- Department of Statistics, Sint Maarten (2017 estimate), via City Population by Thomas Brinkhoff ↗
- Population distribution
- The most populous areas are Lower Prince's Quarter (north of Philipsburg) and Cul de Sac.
- Ethnic groups2011
- Figures count country of birth, not ethnicity.Saint Maarten29.9%Dominican Republic10.2%Haiti7.8%Jamaica6.6%Saint Martin5.9%Guyana5.0%Dominica4.4%Curacao4.1%Aruba3.4%Saint Kitts and Nevis2.8%India2.6%Netherlands2.2%US1.6%Suriname1.4%Saint Lucia1.3%Anguilla1.1%Other8.0%Unspecified1.7%
- Religions2011
- Protestant41.9%Roman Catholic33.1%Hindu5.2%Christian4.1%Jehovah's Witness1.7%Evangelical1.4%Muslim/Jewish1.1%Other1.3%None7.9%Unspecified2.4%
- Protestant
- 41.9%
- Pentecostal
- 14.7%
- Methodist
- 10.0%
- Seventh Day Adventist
- 6.6%
- Baptist
- 4.7%
- Anglican
- 3.1%
- Other Protestant
- 2.8%
Other includes Buddhist, Sikh, Rastafarian.
Source:- The World Factbook: Sint Maarten - CIA
- Languages
- Dutch (Nederlands), English
- Population, Population change, Median age, Age structure, Total fertility rate, Net reproduction rate, Natural change, Net migration rate:UN World Population Prospects ↗
- Urbanization:UN World Urbanization Prospects ↗
- Largest cities:Department of Statistics, Sint Maarten (2017 estimate), via City Population by Thomas Brinkhoff ↗
- Population distribution, Ethnic groups, Religions:The World Factbook: Sint Maarten - CIA
Government & Administration
- Form of state
- Constitutional monarchyShared with the Netherlands: the monarch of the Netherlands is head of state.Sint Maarten is one of four countries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, under a hereditary Crown; the King is represented by a Governor whom he appoints and dismisses (Statuut, Arts. 1, 1a, 2).Sources:
- Staatsregeling van Sint Maarten (AB 2010, GT no. 1), consolidated text ↗, Statuut, Arts. 1, 1a, 2
- Statuut voor het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden, consolidated text ↗, Statuut, Arts. 1, 1a, 2
- System of government
- ParliamentaryMinisters are appointed by national decree and are responsible to the Staten (parliament), and a minister who loses its confidence places his office at its disposal; the Prime Minister chairs the council of ministers (Staatsregeling, Arts. 32, 33, 39).Sources:
- Staatsregeling van Sint Maarten (AB 2010, GT no. 1), consolidated text ↗, Staatsregeling, Arts. 32, 33, 39
- Statuut voor het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden, consolidated text ↗, Staatsregeling, Arts. 32, 33, 39
- Official websites
- Capital
- Philipsburg1,894 people(2011)
- National holidays
- 14 days in 2026
- ThuJan 1New Year's Day
- FriApr 3Good Friday
- SunApr 5Easter Sunday
- MonApr 6Easter Monday
- MonApr 27King's Day
- ThuApr 30Carnival Day
- FriMay 1Labor Day
- ThuMay 14Ascension Day
- SunMay 24Pentecost
- WedJul 1Emancipation Day
- MonOct 12Constitution Day
- WedNov 11Sint Maarten Day
- FriDec 25Christmas Day
- SatDec 26Second Day of Christmas
Nationwide public holidays only, excluding regional, bank and government-only days.
- Time
- ASTAtlantic Standard TimeUTC−4
- Currency
- Caribbean guilder (XCG)
- Entry requirements
- Official visa and entry information
- Calling code
- +1-721
- Internet TLD
- .sx
- ISO 3166-1 codes
- SX, SXM
- Infrastructure
- Airports1 airports
- Key ports
- Coles Bay Oil Terminal, Philipsburg
- By size
- 2 small
- With oil terminals
- 1
- Container traffic
- 105,200 TEU(2019)
- Liner shipping connectivity
- 9.1 UNCTAD index(2021)
Sources:- The World Factbook: Sint Maarten - CIA
- World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- Flag carrier
- WinairState-owned
- Form of state, System of government:Staatsregeling van Sint Maarten (AB 2010, GT no. 1), consolidated text ↗ - Government of Sint Maarten
- Form of state, System of government:Statuut voor het Koninkrijk der Nederlanden, consolidated text ↗ - Ministry of Justice and Security of the Netherlands (KOOP)
- National holidays:Open World Holidays Framework (vacanza/holidays) ↗
- Infrastructure:The World Factbook: Sint Maarten - CIA
- Infrastructure:World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
Economy
- High income
- 2013latest available
- Services78.8% of GDPIndustry11.3% of GDPAgriculture0.1% of GDPManufacturing0.9%part of industryThe shape of the economySource:
- World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- Trade2023
- Goods$231 million15.4%
- Services$1.3 billion84.6%
- Total exports
- $1.5 billion
- Change from 2022
- up 9.4 percent on the previous year9.4%
Sources:- World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- The World Factbook: Sint Maarten - CIA
- Industries
- tourism, light industry
- Income level, GDP by sector, Trade:World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- Trade, Industries:The World Factbook: Sint Maarten - CIA
Cost of Living
- Cost of living index
- Loading
- Monthly costs (excluding rent)
- Loading
- Rent
- Loading
- Buying an apartment
- Loading
Society
- Education expenditure2023
- 3.9% of GDP
- Share of government spending
- 23%
Source:- World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- Mobile subscriptions2022
- 86,542
- Refugees hosted2025
- 17 people
- Asylum seekers
- 142
- Internally displaced persons
- 4,000(2017, latest available)All due to disasters
Sources:- Refugee Data Finder ↗ - UN Refugee Agency
- Global Internal Displacement Database ↗ - Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre
- Inbound tourists2022
- Official tourism site373,000 arrivalsup 17% against 201917% above 2019World Rank105thof 139
- Per resident
- 8.9 arrivals per resident
- Same-day visitors
- 844,000 arrivals
- $1 billion(2023)
- $66.6 million(2023)
Overnight arrivals by year2010 to 2022A tourist stays at least one night. Arrivals count trips, not people.
Source:- UN Tourism Data Dashboard ↗ - UN Tourism
- Education expenditure:World Development Indicators ↗ - World Bank
- Mobile subscriptions:ITU DataHub ↗ - International Telecommunication Union
- Refugees hosted:Refugee Data Finder ↗ - UN Refugee Agency
- Refugees hosted:Global Internal Displacement Database ↗ - Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre
- Inbound tourists:UN Tourism Data Dashboard ↗ - UN Tourism
Crime & Safety
- Travel advisory (US)
- Loading
- Prison population2023
- 203.5 per 100,000 people
- Persons held
- 87
Source:- UNODC Data Portal ↗ - UN Office on Drugs and Crime
- Prison population:UNODC Data Portal ↗ - UN Office on Drugs and Crime
Health
- Life expectancy2026
- 76.9 years
- Infant mortality2026
- 11.7 per 1,000 live births
- Life expectancy, Infant mortality:UN World Population Prospects ↗
Environment
- 2024
- 2.8 µg/m³ of PM2.5Most polluted208thof 236
- WHO guideline
- 5 µg/m³
Source:- Air Quality Life Index ↗ - Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago
- Environmental issues
- scarcity of potable water
- inadequate solid waste management
- pollution from construction, chemical runoff, and sewage
- Air pollution:Air Quality Life Index ↗ - Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago
- Environmental issues:The World Factbook: Sint Maarten - CIA