Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Suriname instead of Australia, you would:
Health
be 16.0 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Australia, 0.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 1.6% of people as of 2024.
live 9.3 years less
In Australia, the average life expectancy is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 74 years (71 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024.
see 85.1% less spent on your healthcare
Australia spends $7,691 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Suriname spends $1,143 as of 2023.
have 66.8% fewer doctors per person
Australia has 40.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Suriname has 13.6 as of 2023.
have 27.6% less access to essential health services
Australia scores 87 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Suriname scores 63 as of 2021.
be 70.2% more likely to die by suicide
Australia has a suicide rate of 13.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Suriname, it is 22.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 91.4% more likely to be unemployed
In Australia, 4.1% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Suriname, that number is 7.8% as of 2025.
be 31.3% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Australia, 13.4% live below the poverty line as of 2020. In Suriname, however, that number is 17.6% as of 2022.
make 89.1% less money
Australia has a GDP per capita of $65,130 as of 2025, while in Suriname, the GDP per capita is $7,070 as of 2025.
Life
have 60.3% more children
In Australia, there are approximately 10.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Suriname, there are 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 42.0 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Australia, approximately 2.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Suriname, 84.0 women do as of 2023.
be 4.8 times more likely to die during infancy
In Australia, approximately 3.1 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Suriname, on the other hand, 14.8 children do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 43.3% less on education
Australia spends 5.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Suriname spends 2.9% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 48.0% less on healthcare
Australia spends 10.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Suriname, that number is 5.4% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 98.5% less coastline
Australia has a total of 25,760 km of coastline. In Suriname, that number is 386 km.
Safety
be 7.7 times more likely to be murdered
Australia has a homicide rate of 0.8 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Suriname, that number is 6.5 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 3.6 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Australia, road accidents kill 4.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Suriname, they kill 16.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 15.4% less strain on fresh water
Australia withdraws 5% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Suriname withdraws 4% as of 2022.
find 48.6% less home broadband
Australia has 36.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Suriname has 18.8 as of 2024.
use 70.4% less electricity
Australia uses 9,801 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2024. Suriname uses 2,897 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
emit 71.2% less CO2
Australia emits 14.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Suriname emits 4.1 tonnes as of 2024.
be 3.9 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Australia, air pollution causes 10.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Suriname, it causes 39.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2020). How we calculate this
Compare further: Australia vs. Suriname
Suriname: At a glance
How big is Suriname compared to Australia? See an in-depth size comparison.