Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Guyana instead of Suriname, you would:
Health
see 16.5% more spent on your healthcare
Suriname spends $1,143 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Guyana spends $1,331 as of 2023.
have 20.6% more access to essential health services
Suriname scores 63 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Guyana scores 76 as of 2021.
live 3.4 years less
In Suriname, the average life expectancy is 74 years (71 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024. In Guyana, that number is 70 years (67 years for men, 74 years for women) as of 2024.
be 11.3% more likely to die by suicide
Suriname has a suicide rate of 22.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Guyana, it is 24.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
make 4.6 times more money
Suriname has a GDP per capita of $7,070 as of 2025, while in Guyana, the GDP per capita is $32,414 as of 2025.
be 52.7% more likely to be unemployed
In Suriname, 7.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Guyana, that number is 12.0% as of 2025.
Life
have 15.9% more children
In Suriname, there are approximately 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Guyana, there are 19.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 56.8% more 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 Guyana, on the other hand, 23.2 children do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 54.3% less on healthcare
Suriname spends 5.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Guyana, that number is 2.5% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 18.9% more coastline
Suriname has a total of 386 km of coastline. In Guyana, that number is 459 km.
Safety
be 2.9 times more likely to be murdered
Suriname has a homicide rate of 6.5 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Guyana, that number is 19.1 per 100,000 as of 2023.
Infrastructure
live with 16.5% less strain on fresh water
Suriname withdraws 4% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Guyana withdraws 3% as of 2022.
find 31.0% less home broadband
Suriname has 18.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Guyana has 12.9 as of 2022.
Environment
be 33.3% more likely to die from air pollution
In Suriname, air pollution causes 39.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Guyana, it causes 52.0 as of 2019.
emit 12.3% more CO2
Suriname emits 4.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Guyana emits 4.6 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Suriname vs. Guyana
Guyana: At a glance
How big is Guyana compared to Suriname? See an in-depth size comparison.