Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Suriname instead of New Caledonia, you would:

Health

live 5.2 years less

In New Caledonia, the average life expectancy is 79 years (76 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 74 years (71 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024.

View global rankings →

Economy

be 29.9% less likely to be unemployed

In New Caledonia, 11.2% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Suriname, that number is 7.8% as of 2025.

View global rankings →

make 75.8% less money

New Caledonia has a GDP per capita of $29,213 as of 2024, while in Suriname, the GDP per capita is $7,070 as of 2025.

View global rankings →

Life

have 22.2% more children

In New Caledonia, there are approximately 14.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Suriname, there are 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

View global rankings →

Geography

see 82.9% less coastline

New Caledonia has a total of 2,254 km of coastline. In Suriname, that number is 386 km.

View global rankings →

Environment

emit 76.2% less CO2

New Caledonia emits 17.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Suriname emits 4.1 tonnes as of 2024.

View global rankings →

Sources: World Bank (2024–2025), The World Factbook. How we calculate this

Compare further: New Caledonia vs. Suriname

Cost of Living Comparison · 7 categories - 2026 data
Suriname is 53.6% cheaper than New Caledonia overall
→
Size Comparison · See true size
New Caledonia is about 9 times smaller than Suriname.
→
Moving from New Caledonia to Suriname · Cost, visas & climate
Compare cost of living, salary and climate.
→

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.
Read more

How big is Suriname compared to New Caledonia? See an in-depth size comparison.

Share this

Ask the Elsewhere Community

Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Suriname or New Caledonia. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.