Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Suriname instead of Nicaragua, you would:
Health
be 11.8% less likely to be obese
In Nicaragua, 34.9% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 30.8% of people as of 2024.
see 65.9% more spent on your healthcare
Nicaragua spends $689 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Suriname spends $1,143 as of 2023.
live 1.3 years less
In Nicaragua, 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.
have 10.0% less access to essential health services
Nicaragua scores 70 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Suriname scores 63 as of 2021.
be 5.3 times more likely to die by suicide
Nicaragua has a suicide rate of 4.2 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Suriname, it is 22.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
make 2.2 times more money
Nicaragua has a GDP per capita of $3,173 as of 2025, while in Suriname, the GDP per capita is $7,070 as of 2025.
be 55.4% more likely to be unemployed
In Nicaragua, 5.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Suriname, that number is 7.8% as of 2025.
Life
be 40.0% more likely to die during childbirth
In Nicaragua, approximately 60.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Suriname, 84.0 women do as of 2023.
be 57.4% more likely to die during infancy
In Nicaragua, approximately 9.4 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.
have 10.4% fewer children
In Nicaragua, there are approximately 19.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Suriname, there are 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 12.8% more likely to have access to electricity
In Nicaragua, approximately 88% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 71% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Suriname, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 99% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 42.3% more likely to have internet access
In Nicaragua, approximately 61.4% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Suriname, about 87.4% do as of 2023.
Expenditures
spend 34.8% less on healthcare
Nicaragua spends 8.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Suriname, that number is 5.4% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 57.6% less coastline
Nicaragua has a total of 910 km of coastline. In Suriname, that number is 386 km.
Safety
be 42.6% less likely to be murdered
Nicaragua has a homicide rate of 11.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Suriname, that number is 6.5 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 19.1% more likely to die in a road accident
In Nicaragua, road accidents kill 13.6 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Suriname, they kill 16.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 3.2 times more home broadband
Nicaragua has 5.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Suriname has 18.8 as of 2024.
use 4.5 times more electricity
Nicaragua uses 641 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Suriname uses 2,897 kWh as of 2023.
live with 77.9% more strain on fresh water
Nicaragua withdraws 2% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Suriname withdraws 4% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 4.9 times more CO2
Nicaragua emits 0.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Suriname emits 4.1 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Nicaragua vs. Suriname
Suriname: At a glance
How big is Suriname compared to Nicaragua? See an in-depth size comparison.