Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Guyana is 31% bigger than Suriname.
Guyana: 214,970 km² (2023) · Suriname: 163,820 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
Guyana’s coastline is 19% longer than Suriname’s.
Guyana: 459 km (2026 edition) · Suriname: 386 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Guyana’s highest peak towers 1,545 m above Suriname’s.
Guyana: 2,775 m (2026 edition) · Suriname: 1,230 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Guyana has 31% more people than Suriname.
Guyana: 835,986 (2025) · Suriname: 639,850 (2025)
How crowded is it?
Suriname and Guyana are nearly identical here.
Guyana: 4 per km² (2025) · Suriname: 4 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Suriname are 2.4 cm taller than in Guyana.
Guyana: 172.2 cm (2019) · Suriname: 174.5 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Suriname are 2.7 cm taller than in Guyana.
Guyana: 159.6 cm (2019) · Suriname: 162.3 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Suriname is 2.5 years older than in Guyana.
Guyana: 25.6 years (2023) · Suriname: 28.1 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Guyana have 0.2 more children on average than in Suriname.
Guyana: 2.4 children per woman (2024) · Suriname: 2.23 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
8.2% of people in Suriname are 65 or older, versus 7.0% in Guyana.
Guyana: 7% (2025) · Suriname: 8.2% (2025)
How many official languages?
Guyana and Suriname are practically level.
Guyana: 1 (2026) · Suriname: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Guyana’s economy is 6 times the size of Suriname’s.
Guyana: $27.1 billion (2025) · Suriname: $4.52 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Guyana produces 4.3 times as much per person as Suriname.
Guyana: Int$97,899 (2025) · Suriname: Int$22,652 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Guyana: no data · Suriname: 39.2 (2022)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 12% in Guyana, versus 7.8% in Suriname.
Guyana: 12% (2025) · Suriname: 7.8% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Guyana: 0.9% (2024) · Suriname: no data
How expensive is it?
Guyana’s price level (US = 100) is 1.1× Suriname’s.
Guyana: 33% (2025) · Suriname: 31% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Guyana spends 70% more on health per person than Suriname.
Guyana: $505 (2023) · Suriname: $297 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Suriname live 3.4 years longer than in Guyana.
Guyana: 70.3 years (2024) · Suriname: 73.8 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Guyana is 57% more likely to die before turning one than in Suriname.
Guyana: 23.2 per 1,000 (2024) · Suriname: 14.8 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Guyana has 2% more doctors per person than Suriname.
Guyana: 1.4 per 1,000 (2020) · Suriname: 1.4 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is obesity?
31% of adults in Suriname are obese, versus 30% in Guyana.
Guyana: 29.8% (2024) · Suriname: 30.8% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
Guyana: 11.7% (2024) · Suriname: no data
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
Guyana: no data · Suriname: 6.27 (2015)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Guyana drink 8% more alcohol than in Suriname.
Guyana: 6.5 litres (2023) · Suriname: 6 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Guyana has 83% more meat per person than Suriname.
Guyana: 88.7 kg (2023) · Suriname: 48.5 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Guyana has 779 kcal more food per person per day than Suriname.
Guyana: 3,318 kcal (2023) · Suriname: 2,539 kcal (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Guyana went to school 0.27 years longer than in Suriname.
Guyana: 8.7 years (2023) · Suriname: 8.4 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Suriname welcomed 34% more tourists per resident than Guyana (2019).
Guyana: 0.35 (2022) · Suriname: 0.47 (2017)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
87% of people in Suriname are online, versus 83% in Guyana.
Guyana: 83% (2024) · Suriname: 87% (2023)
Who has electricity at home?
99% of people in Suriname have electricity, versus 93% in Guyana.
Guyana: 93% (2024) · Suriname: 99% (2024)
How many live in cities?
66% of people in Suriname live in cities, versus 26% in Guyana.
Guyana: 26% (2025) · Suriname: 66% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Suriname has 142 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Guyana 113.
Guyana: 113 (2022) · Suriname: 142 (2024)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Suriname fly 26 times as many passengers per resident as those from Guyana.
Guyana: 0.01 (2021) · Suriname: 0.23 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 94% of Suriname, but only 87% of Guyana.
Guyana: 87.1% (2023) · Suriname: 94.4% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Guyana emits 15% more CO₂ than someone in Suriname.
Guyana: 5.4 t (2024) · Suriname: 4.7 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
53% of Suriname’s electricity is renewable, versus 2.9% in Guyana.
Guyana: 2.9% (2024) · Suriname: 52.9% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in Guyana carries 10% more fine dust than in Suriname.
Guyana: 14.8 µg/m³ (2024) · Suriname: 13.5 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 2.9 times as likely to be murdered in Guyana as in Suriname.
Guyana: 19.1 per 100k (2023) · Suriname: 6.5 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Suriname are 7% deadlier than in Guyana.
Guyana: 15.2 per 100k (2021) · Suriname: 16.2 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Suriname is on average 0.6 °C warmer than Guyana.
Guyana: 25.7°C (2016–2025 avg) · Suriname: 26.2°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Suriname gets 3% more rain than Guyana.
Guyana: 2,224 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Suriname: 2,282 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Guyana bigger than Suriname?
Guyana is larger. Guyana is 31% bigger than Suriname.
Which has more people, Guyana or Suriname?
Guyana has 31% more people than Suriname (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Guyana or Suriname?
People in Suriname live 3.4 years longer than in Guyana. Life expectancy at birth is 70.3 years in Guyana and 73.8 in Suriname.
Are people taller in Guyana or Suriname?
Men in Suriname are 2.4 cm taller than in Guyana (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
