Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Suriname instead of Panama, you would:
Health
be 18.4% less likely to be obese
In Panama, 37.7% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 30.8% of people as of 2024.
be 45.5% more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Panama, 1.1% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 1.6% of people as of 2024.
live 6.0 years less
In Panama, the average life expectancy is 80 years (77 years for men, 83 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 65.6% less spent on your healthcare
Panama spends $3,318 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Suriname spends $1,143 as of 2023.
have 16.6% fewer doctors per person
Panama has 16.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Suriname has 13.6 as of 2023.
have 19.2% less access to essential health services
Panama scores 78 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Suriname scores 63 as of 2021.
be 6.8 times more likely to die by suicide
Panama has a suicide rate of 3.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Suriname, it is 22.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 18.9% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Panama, 21.7% live below the poverty line as of 2023. In Suriname, however, that number is 17.6% as of 2022.
make 64.3% less money
Panama has a GDP per capita of $19,790 as of 2025, while in Suriname, the GDP per capita is $7,070 as of 2025.
Life
be 2.3 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Panama, approximately 37.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Suriname, 84.0 women do as of 2023.
be 23.3% more likely to die during infancy
In Panama, approximately 12.0 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.
Basic Needs
be 20.1% more likely to have internet access
In Panama, approximately 72.8% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Suriname, about 87.4% do as of 2023.
Expenditures
spend 35.1% less on healthcare
Panama spends 8.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Suriname, that number is 5.4% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 16.2% more on education
Panama spends 2.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Suriname spends 2.9% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Geography
see 84.5% less coastline
Panama has a total of 2,490 km of coastline. In Suriname, that number is 386 km.
Safety
be 44.3% less likely to be murdered
Panama has a homicide rate of 11.7 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Suriname, that number is 6.5 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 2.2 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Panama, road accidents kill 7.3 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Suriname, they kill 16.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 4.4 times more strain on fresh water
Panama withdraws 1% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Suriname withdraws 4% as of 2022.
Environment
be 2.3 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Panama, air pollution causes 17.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Suriname, it causes 39.0 as of 2019.
emit 48.2% more CO2
Panama emits 2.7 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 (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Panama vs. Suriname
Suriname: At a glance
How big is Suriname compared to Panama? See an in-depth size comparison.