Suriname vs Uruguay
Uruguay is 8% larger than Suriname.
SurinameUruguaySuriname moved onto Uruguay · Equal-area projection
0.93×
Suriname is 0.93× the area of Uruguay. Put the other way, Uruguay is 1.08× the size of Suriname.
 Suriname |  Uruguay | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaUruguay: 1.08× the area | 163,270 km²#91 of 194 | 176,215 km²#89 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 3 | 2 |
| People | ||
| PopulationUruguay: 5.29× the population | 639,850#164 of 194 · 2025 | 3,384,688#132 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityUruguay: 4.9× the density | 3.9 / km²#189 of 194 | 19 / km²#168 of 194 |
| Urban populationUruguay: 1.45× the urban share | 66%#87 of 192 · 2025 | 96%#9 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSuriname: 1.59× the births per woman | 2.23 per woman#83 of 192 · 2024 | 1.40 per woman#157 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthSuriname: 0.91 points higher | +0.85%#105 of 192 · 2025 | −0.06%#158 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateSuriname: 1.76× the birth rate | 17.2 per 1,000#85 of 192 · 2024 | 9.8 per 1,000#145 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateUruguay: 1.46× the death rate | 6.8 per 1,000#112 of 192 · 2024 | 9.9 per 1,000#37 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Suriname: 7.4 points higher | 25.3%#89 of 192 · 2025 | 17.9%#129 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Uruguay: 8.1 points higher | 8.2%#93 of 192 · 2025 | 16.3%#49 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationUruguay: 1.1 per 1,000 higher | −1.5 per 1,000#128 of 192 · 2025 | −0.4 per 1,000#95 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadSuriname: 2.25× the refugees for its size | 0.09 per 1,000#119 of 190 · 2025 | 0.04 per 1,000#134 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyUruguay: 4.5 years longer | 73.8 years#96 of 192 · 2024 | 78.3 years#50 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalitySuriname: 2.39× the infant mortality | 14.8 per 1,000 births#83 of 191 · 2024 | 6.2 per 1,000 births#136 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsUruguay: 3.43× the doctors per person | 1.36 per 1,000#98 of 178 · 2023 | 4.67 per 1,000#13 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolmentUruguay: 30.8× the university enrolment | 2.6%#145 of 145 · 2024 | 80.0%#26 of 145 · 2023 |
| Human Development IndexUruguay: 0.140 higher | 0.722#113 of 190 · 2023 | 0.862#47 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaUruguay: 3.91× the income per person | $6,140#104 of 185 · 2025 | $24,020#49 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPUruguay: 18.9× the economy | $4.52B2025 | $85.35B2025 |
| Income group | Upper-middle income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Uruguay: 1.69× the output per person | $22,652#85 of 184 · 2025 | $38,315#56 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthThe same | +1.8%#137 of 187 · 2025 | +1.8%#137 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationSuriname: 4.5 points higher | +9.2%#22 of 176 · 2025 | +4.7%#44 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentSuriname: 1.04× the unemployment | 7.8%#52 of 178 · 2025 | 7.5%#53 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertySuriname: 11× the share in extreme poverty | 2.2%#71 of 149 · 2022 | 0.2%#121 of 149 · 2024 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Uruguay: 0.8 higher | 39.2#44 of 149 · 2022 | 40.0#37 of 149 · 2024 |
| Jobs in agricultureUruguay: 1.1 points higher | 7.0% of jobs#121 of 178 · 2025 | 8.1% of jobs#118 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industrySuriname: 7.3 points higher | 26.1% of jobs#34 of 178 · 2025 | 18.8% of jobs#93 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesUruguay: 6.3 points higher | 66.9% of jobs#65 of 178 · 2025 | 73.2% of jobs#37 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentSuriname: 43.1 points higher | 45.4% of GDP#2 of 184 · 2025 | 2.3% of GDP#84 of 184 · 2025 |
| Exports | — | 27.1% of GDP#109 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spending | — | 2.3% of GDP#48 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersUruguay: 1.05× the share online | 87%#71 of 184 · 2023 | 92%#43 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsAbout as many mobile subscriptions | 142 per 100#32 of 191 · 2024 | 146 per 100#30 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaSuriname: 7.96× the forest share | 92% of land#2 of 192 · 2024 | 12% of land#150 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personSuriname: 1.58× the CO₂ per person | 4.06 t a year#59 of 185 · 2024 | 2.57 t a year#91 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyUruguay: 43.3 points higher | 14.5%#125 of 190 · 2021 | 57.8%#41 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityUruguay: 1.0 points higher | 99.0%#112 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Suriname: 1.44× the air pollution | 15.7 µg/m³#112 of 191 · 2023 | 10.9 µg/m³#147 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landSuriname: 11.7 points higher | 14.8% of land#119 of 191 · 2025 | 3.1% of land#175 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landUruguay: 12.1 points higher | 0.3% of land#186 of 190 · 2024 | 12.4% of land#83 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressUruguay: 3.02× the water stress | 4.0%#130 of 176 · 2022 | 12.1%#84 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationSuriname: 1.79× the rain and snow | 2,331 mm#19 of 180 · 2022 | 1,300 mm#69 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityUruguay: 0.70 higher | +0.60#62 of 193 · 2025 | +1.30#12 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionUruguay: 1.94 higher | −0.38#109 of 193 · 2025 | +1.56#16 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateUruguay: 1.72× the homicide rate | 6.5 per 100,000#42 of 146 · 2023 | 11.2 per 100,000#27 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | Presidential republic |
| Capital | Paramaribo | Montevideo |
| Currency | Surinamese dollar (SRD) | Uruguayan peso (UYU) |
| Official languages | Dutch | Spanish |
| Traffic drives | On the left | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC−3 | UTC−3 |
| Calling code | +597 | +598 |
| Region | South America | South America |
Area: Wikidata. Population, income, health, economy, environment and governance: World Bank. Human Development Index: UNDP. Government: CIA World Factbook. Ranks among the 194 independent states. All sources
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Suriname sits at about 4° N and is stretched to 1.01× its true area; Uruguay at 33° S is stretched to 1.42×. Here the two are distorted about the same amount, so Mercator gets this pair roughly right. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Suriname bigger than Uruguay?
- No. Suriname is 7% smaller than Uruguay. Suriname covers 163,270 km² and Uruguay covers 176,215 km².
- How many times does Suriname fit into Uruguay?
- About 1.1 times: Uruguay has 1.08× the area of Suriname.
- Why do Suriname and Uruguay look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Suriname is drawn about 1.01× its true area there and Uruguay about 1.42×. For this pair the distortion is similar, so Mercator gets the comparison roughly right. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Suriname or Uruguay?
- Uruguay: 3,384,688 people against 639,850. Density: Suriname 3.9 per km², Uruguay 19 per km².
- Which is richer, Suriname or Uruguay?
- By gross national income per person, Uruguay: $24,020 against $6,140 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 3.91× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Suriname or Uruguay?
- In Uruguay: life expectancy at birth is 78.3 years, against 73.8 — 4.5 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Suriname and Uruguay have?
- The same form of government, by constitution: presidential republic (CIA World Factbook).