If you lived in Suriname instead of Mexico, you would:

Health

be 17.6% less likely to be obese

In Mexico, 37.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 30.8% of people as of 2024.

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be 3.2 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS

In Mexico, 0.5% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 1.6% of people as of 2024.

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live 1.5 years less

In Mexico, the average life expectancy is 75 years (72 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 74 years (71 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024.

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see 16.5% less spent on your healthcare

Mexico spends $1,368 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Suriname spends $1,143 as of 2023.

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have 47.6% fewer doctors per person

Mexico has 25.9 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Suriname has 13.6 as of 2023.

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have 16.0% less access to essential health services

Mexico scores 75 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Suriname scores 63 as of 2021.

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be 3.2 times more likely to die by suicide

Mexico has a suicide rate of 7.0 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Suriname, it is 22.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 40.5% less likely to live below the poverty line

In Mexico, 29.6% live below the poverty line as of 2024. In Suriname, however, that number is 17.6% as of 2022.

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be 2.9 times more likely to be unemployed

In Mexico, 2.7% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Suriname, that number is 7.8% as of 2025.

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make 49.1% less money

Mexico has a GDP per capita of $13,889 as of 2025, while in Suriname, the GDP per capita is $7,070 as of 2025.

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Life

have 10.9% more children

In Mexico, there are approximately 15.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Suriname, there are 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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be 100.0% more likely to die during childbirth

In Mexico, approximately 42.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Suriname, 84.0 women do as of 2023.

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be 22.3% more likely to die during infancy

In Mexico, approximately 12.1 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.

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Expenditures

spend 29.3% less on education

Mexico spends 4.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Suriname spends 2.9% of total GDP on education as of 2023.

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Geography

see 95.9% less coastline

Mexico has a total of 9,330 km of coastline. In Suriname, that number is 386 km.

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Safety

be 73.8% less likely to be murdered

Mexico has a homicide rate of 24.9 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Suriname, that number is 6.5 per 100,000 as of 2023.

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be 35.0% more likely to die in a road accident

In Mexico, road accidents kill 12.0 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Suriname, they kill 16.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

live with 91.2% less strain on fresh water

Mexico withdraws 45% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Suriname withdraws 4% as of 2022.

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find 13.8% less home broadband

Mexico has 21.7 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Suriname has 18.8 as of 2024.

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Environment

be 30.0% more likely to die from air pollution

In Mexico, air pollution causes 30.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Suriname, it causes 39.0 as of 2019.

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emit 11.5% more CO2

Mexico emits 3.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Suriname emits 4.1 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this

Suriname: At a glance

Suriname is a sovereign country in South America, with a total land area of approximately 156,000 sq km. First explored by the Spaniards in the 16th century and then settled by the English in the mid-17th century, Suriname became a Dutch colony in 1667. With the abolition of African slavery in 1863, workers were brought in from India and Java. Independence from the Netherlands was granted in 1975. Five years later the civilian government was replaced by a military regime that soon declared a socialist republic. It continued to exert control through a succession of nominally civilian administrations until 1987, when international pressure finally forced a democratic election. In 1990, the military overthrew the civilian leadership, but a democratically elected government - a four-party coalition - returned to power in 1991. The coalition expanded to eight parties in 2005 and ruled until August 2010, when voters returned former military leader Desire BOUTERSE and his opposition coalition to power.
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How big is Suriname compared to Mexico? See an in-depth size comparison.

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