Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Switzerland instead of Suriname, you would:
Health
be 87.5% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Suriname, 1.6% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Switzerland, that number is 0.2% of people as of 2024.
live 10.6 years longer
In Suriname, the average life expectancy is 74 years (71 years for men, 77 years for women) as of 2024. In Switzerland, that number is 84 years (83 years for men, 86 years for women) as of 2024.
be 63.3% less likely to be obese
In Suriname, 30.8% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Switzerland, that number is 11.3% of people as of 2024.
see 9.3 times more spent on your healthcare
Suriname spends $1,143 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Switzerland spends $10,602 as of 2023.
have 3.3 times more doctors per person
Suriname has 13.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Switzerland has 44.8 as of 2022.
have 36.5% more access to essential health services
Suriname scores 63 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Switzerland scores 86 as of 2021.
be 37.0% less likely to die by suicide
Suriname has a suicide rate of 22.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Switzerland, it is 14.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 37.8% less likely to be unemployed
In Suriname, 7.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Switzerland, that number is 4.9% as of 2025.
be 10.2% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Suriname, 17.6% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Switzerland, however, that number is 15.8% as of 2021.
make 16.2 times more money
Suriname has a GDP per capita of $7,070 as of 2025, while in Switzerland, the GDP per capita is $114,769 as of 2025.
Life
be 94.0% 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 Switzerland, 5.0 women do as of 2023.
be 77.0% 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 Switzerland, on the other hand, 3.4 children do as of 2024.
have 49.3% fewer children
In Suriname, there are approximately 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Switzerland, there are 8.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 11.4% more likely to have internet access
In Suriname, approximately 87.4% of the population has internet access as of 2023. In Switzerland, about 97.3% do as of 2025.
Expenditures
spend 69.3% more on education
Suriname spends 2.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Switzerland spends 4.9% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 2.2 times more on healthcare
Suriname spends 5.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Switzerland, that number is 11.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 90.8% less likely to be murdered
Suriname has a homicide rate of 6.5 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Switzerland, that number is 0.6 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 85.2% less likely to die in a road accident
In Suriname, road accidents kill 16.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Switzerland, they kill 2.4 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 2.5 times more home broadband
Suriname has 18.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Switzerland has 47.0 as of 2024.
use 2.5 times more electricity
Suriname uses 2,897 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Switzerland uses 7,117 kWh as of 2024.
live with 64.6% more strain on fresh water
Suriname withdraws 4% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Switzerland withdraws 6% as of 2022.
Environment
be 74.4% less likely to die from air pollution
In Suriname, air pollution causes 39.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Switzerland, it causes 10.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Suriname vs. Switzerland
Switzerland: At a glance
How big is Switzerland compared to Suriname? See an in-depth size comparison.