Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Cuba instead of Suriname, you would:
Health
be 62.5% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Suriname, 1.6% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Cuba, that number is 0.6% of people as of 2024.
live 4.5 years longer
In Suriname, the average life expectancy is 74 years (71 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024. In Cuba, that number is 78 years (76 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024.
be 25.4% less likely to be obese
In Suriname, 30.8% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Cuba, that number is 23.0% of people as of 2024.
see 2.3 times more spent on your healthcare
Suriname spends $1,143 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Cuba spends $2,575 as of 2023.
have 7.0 times more doctors per person
Suriname has 13.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Cuba has 95.4 as of 2021.
have 31.7% more access to essential health services
Suriname scores 63 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Cuba scores 83 as of 2021.
be 38.1% less likely to die by suicide
Suriname has a suicide rate of 22.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Cuba, it is 13.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 77.7% less likely to be unemployed
In Suriname, 7.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Cuba, that number is 1.8% as of 2025.
Life
be 58.3% less likely to die during childbirth
In Suriname, approximately 84.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Cuba, 35.0 women do as of 2023.
be 54.1% less likely to die during infancy
In Suriname, approximately 14.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Cuba, on the other hand, 6.8 children do as of 2024.
have 49.7% fewer children
In Suriname, there are approximately 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Cuba, there are 8.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 19.4% less likely to have internet access
In Suriname, approximately 87.4% of the population has internet access as of 2023. In Cuba, about 70.5% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 2.9 times more on education
Suriname spends 2.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Cuba spends 8.4% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 73.4% more on healthcare
Suriname spends 5.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Cuba, that number is 9.4% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 9.7 times more coastline
Suriname has a total of 386 km of coastline. In Cuba, that number is 3,735 km.
Safety
be 66.7% less likely to die in a road accident
In Suriname, road accidents kill 16.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Cuba, they kill 5.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 83.6% less home broadband
Suriname has 18.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Cuba has 3.1 as of 2024.
live with 6.1 times more strain on fresh water
Suriname withdraws 4% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Cuba withdraws 24% as of 2022.
use 49.5% less electricity
Suriname uses 2,897 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Cuba uses 1,462 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 20.5% less likely to die from air pollution
In Suriname, air pollution causes 39.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Cuba, it causes 31.0 as of 2019.
emit 53.0% less CO2
Suriname emits 4.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Cuba emits 1.9 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: Suriname vs. Cuba
Cuba: At a glance
How big is Cuba compared to Suriname? See an in-depth size comparison.