Quality of life comparison
If you lived in New Zealand instead of Suriname, you would:
Health
be 93.8% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Suriname, 1.6% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In New Zealand, that number is 0.1% of people as of 2024.
live 8.2 years longer
In Suriname, the average life expectancy is 74 years (71 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024. In New Zealand, that number is 82 years (80 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024.
see 4.9 times more spent on your healthcare
Suriname spends $1,143 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). New Zealand spends $5,576 as of 2024.
have 2.7 times more doctors per person
Suriname has 13.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. New Zealand has 36.1 as of 2022.
have 34.9% more access to essential health services
Suriname scores 63 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. New Zealand scores 85 as of 2021.
be 46.5% less likely to die by suicide
Suriname has a suicide rate of 22.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In New Zealand, it is 11.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 10.5% more likely to be obese
In Suriname, 30.8% of adults are obese as of 2024. In New Zealand, that number is 34.0% of people as of 2024.
Economy
be 35.1% less likely to be unemployed
In Suriname, 7.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In New Zealand, that number is 5.1% as of 2025.
make 7.0 times more money
Suriname has a GDP per capita of $7,070 as of 2025, while in New Zealand, the GDP per capita is $49,591 as of 2025.
Life
be 91.7% 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 New Zealand, 7.0 women do as of 2023.
be 73.0% 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 New Zealand, on the other hand, 4.0 children do as of 2024.
have 35.7% fewer children
In Suriname, there are approximately 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In New Zealand, there are 11.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 81.5% more on education
Suriname spends 2.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. New Zealand spends 5.2% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 86.0% more on healthcare
Suriname spends 5.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In New Zealand, that number is 10.1% of GDP as of 2024.
Geography
see 39.2 times more coastline
Suriname has a total of 386 km of coastline. In New Zealand, that number is 15,134 km.
Safety
be 77.6% less likely to be murdered
Suriname has a homicide rate of 6.5 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In New Zealand, that number is 1.5 per 100,000 as of 2022.
be 59.3% less likely to die in a road accident
In Suriname, road accidents kill 16.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In New Zealand, they kill 6.6 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 2.0 times more home broadband
Suriname has 18.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. New Zealand has 38.0 as of 2024.
use 2.8 times more electricity
Suriname uses 2,897 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. New Zealand uses 7,989 kWh as of 2024.
live with 2.0 times more strain on fresh water
Suriname withdraws 4% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. New Zealand withdraws 8% as of 2022.
Environment
be 69.2% less likely to die from air pollution
In Suriname, air pollution causes 39.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In New Zealand, it causes 12.0 as of 2019.
emit 48.0% more CO2
Suriname emits 4.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. New Zealand emits 6.0 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. New Zealand
New Zealand: At a glance
How big is New Zealand compared to Suriname? See an in-depth size comparison.