Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Tonga instead of Suriname, you would:
Health
be 78.8% less likely to die by suicide
Suriname has a suicide rate of 22.3 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Tonga, it is 4.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 2.4 times more likely to be obese
In Suriname, 30.8% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Tonga, that number is 73.8% of people as of 2024.
see 55.2% less spent on your healthcare
Suriname spends $1,143 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Tonga spends $512 as of 2023.
have 25.2% fewer doctors per person
Suriname has 13.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Tonga has 10.1 as of 2021.
Economy
be 74.3% less likely to be unemployed
In Suriname, 7.8% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Tonga, that number is 2.0% as of 2025.
be 17.0% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Suriname, 17.6% live below the poverty line as of 2022. In Tonga, however, that number is 20.6% as of 2021.
Life
be 20.2% 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 Tonga, 67.0 women do as of 2023.
be 47.3% 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 Tonga, on the other hand, 7.8 children do as of 2024.
have 34.3% more children
In Suriname, there are approximately 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Tonga, there are 23.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 22.8% less likely to have internet access
In Suriname, approximately 87.4% of the population has internet access as of 2023. In Tonga, about 67.4% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 85.0% more on education
Suriname spends 2.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Tonga spends 5.3% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
spend 36.0% more on healthcare
Suriname spends 5.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Tonga, that number is 7.4% of GDP as of 2023.
Safety
be 47.5% less likely to die in a road accident
In Suriname, road accidents kill 16.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Tonga, they kill 8.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 56.4% less home broadband
Suriname has 18.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Tonga has 8.2 as of 2022.
Environment
be 38.5% less likely to die from air pollution
In Suriname, air pollution causes 39.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Tonga, it causes 24.0 as of 2019.
emit 59.9% less CO2
Suriname emits 4.1 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Tonga emits 1.6 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Suriname vs. Tonga
Tonga: At a glance
How big is Tonga compared to Suriname? See an in-depth size comparison.