Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Suriname instead of Puerto Rico, you would:
Health
be 27.4% less likely to be obese
In Puerto Rico, 42.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Suriname, that number is 30.8% of people as of 2024.
live 8.1 years less
In Puerto Rico, the average life expectancy is 82 years (78 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.
be 4.1 times more likely to die by suicide
Puerto Rico has a suicide rate of 5.4 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Suriname, it is 22.3 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 30.7% more likely to be unemployed
In Puerto Rico, 6.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Suriname, that number is 7.8% as of 2025.
make 82.6% less money
Puerto Rico has a GDP per capita of $40,620 as of 2025, while in Suriname, the GDP per capita is $7,070 as of 2025.
Life
have 3.0 times more children
In Puerto Rico, there are approximately 5.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Suriname, there are 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 7.6 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Puerto Rico, approximately 11.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Suriname, 84.0 women do as of 2023.
be 2.5 times more likely to die during infancy
In Puerto Rico, approximately 6.0 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Suriname, on the other hand, 14.8 children do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 32.8% less on education
Puerto Rico spends 4.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Suriname spends 2.9% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Geography
see 23.0% less coastline
Puerto Rico has a total of 501 km of coastline. In Suriname, that number is 386 km.
Safety
be 55.3% less likely to be murdered
Puerto Rico has a homicide rate of 14.6 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Suriname, that number is 6.5 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 29.6% more likely to die in a road accident
In Puerto Rico, road accidents kill 12.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Suriname, they kill 16.2 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 79.8% less strain on fresh water
Puerto Rico withdraws 20% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Suriname withdraws 4% as of 2022.
find 33.0% less home broadband
Puerto Rico has 28.0 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Suriname has 18.8 as of 2024.
Environment
emit 15.8% less CO2
Puerto Rico emits 4.8 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Suriname emits 4.1 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), The World Factbook (2022), World Health Organization (2024), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021). How we calculate this
Compare further: Puerto Rico vs. Suriname
Suriname: At a glance
How big is Suriname compared to Puerto Rico? See an in-depth size comparison.