Photo: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center/Reto Stöckli

Suriname: population and ages

Suriname: 643,000 people on 1 January 2026.

The UN projects growth until 2071, to a peak of 753,000, and a decline after that.

Figures for 2026 are UN projections (medium variant). Estimates end in 2023.

Population, 1 January 2026
642,582
Median age
28.9
Births in 2026
10,815
Deaths in 2026
4,505
Life expectancy at birth
74.0
Children per woman
2.19
Under 15
25.2%
65 and over
8.3%
Population pyramid, Suriname, 1 January 2026MaleFemale0102030405060708090100+02K2K4K4K6K6K
Population pyramid, Suriname, 1 January 2026 Projection

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Population over time

In mid-1950 there were 196,000 people, so the population is now 3.3 times as large.

The UN projects 10,800 births and 4,510 deaths in 2026, 6,310 more births than deaths.

The UN projects the first year with more deaths than births in 2076.

Population, 1950 to 2100Projected from 20240200K400K600K800K1950197520002025205020752100
2026 Suriname: 645.3K

Ages

The median age is 28.9, which is 2.2 years below the world’s 31.1.

25% of the people are under 15 and 8.3% are 65 or older (world: 24% and 11%).

The UN projects that people aged 65 and over will outnumber children under 15 from 2064.

Women have 2.2 children on average at today’s rates (world: 2.2), against 6.2 in 1950.

Life expectancy at birth is 74.0 years, above the world’s 73.8. In 1950 it was 50.7.

Median age, 1950 to 2100Projected from 2024010203040501950197520002025205020752100SurinameWorld
2026 Suriname: 29World: 31

See how the pyramid changes from 1950 to 2100

Births, deaths and the years ahead

For mid-2050 the UN projects 734,000 people, 14% more than now, with a median age of 35.8.

Births and deaths per year, 1950 to 2100Projected from 202405K10K15K1950197520002025205020752100DeathsBirths
2026 Births: 10.8KDeaths: 4.5K

Compare Suriname with other countries

Development and urbanisation

In 2025, 39% of the people lived in cities, 34% in towns and semi-dense areas and 27% in rural areas. For 2050 the UN projects 40% in cities.

Degree of urbanisation: one rule for every country, a city has at least 50,000 people at 1,500 or more per km². National definitions of “urban” differ.

IndicatorLatest valueYear
People using the internet87.4%2023
Access to electricity99.0%2024
Adult literacy (ages 15 and over)92.9%2012
98.0%2024
90.0%2024
95.0%2024
Human Development Index0.7222023

Each value is the latest one published, with the year it refers to. Countries publish in different years. Sources: World Bank, World Development Indicators (ITU, SDG 7.1.1, UNESCO UIS), UNDP, Human Development Report, UN, World Urbanization Prospects 2025.

Longevity, ageing and the future

By the death rates of 2023, life expectancy at birth was 73.6 years. People who had reached 65 could expect 18.7 more years for women and 14.7 for men.

On 1 January 2026, there are 12.6 people aged 65 or more for every 100 aged 15 to 64. For 2050, the UN projects 22.8.

For 2100 the UN projects a population of 709,000, with a 95 percent prediction interval of 152,000 to 4.11 million.

Life expectancy at birth is a period measure. It sums up the death rates of one year and is not a forecast of how long the babies born that year will live.

Sources: World Population Prospects 2024, life tables, probabilistic projections, UN DESA Population Division (CC BY 3.0 IGO).

International migrants

In mid-2024, 51,900 international migrants lived here, 8.2% of the population.

In mid-2024, 258,000 people from here lived in other countries.

Largest countries of origin
CountryPeople
Guyana14,720
Brazil6,044
China5,913
Netherlands3,774
Largest countries of destination
CountryPeople
Netherlands177,165
France34,228
French Guiana28,615
Belgium6,731
Guyana4,717

Counted by citizenship. Refugees are included. A migrant stock counts people living outside their country at mid-year, not journeys or yearly moves. Sources: International Migrant Stock 2024, UN DESA Population Division (CC BY 3.0 IGO).

Cities

Cities of 50,000 people or more here, by the UN degree of urbanisation: 1.

CityPopulation 2025
Paramaribo252,581

Sources: World Urbanization Prospects 2025, UN DESA Population Division (CC BY 3.0 IGO).

All cities

Data and sources

Suriname every ten years
YearPopulation (1 July)Median ageBirthsDeathsLife expectancyChildren per woman
1950195,56517.98,4413,73550.76.21
1960263,91817.011,8443,67456.66.59
1970379,44214.512,8033,97959.55.53
1980375,37717.310,9563,95360.73.79
1990412,49219.812,4293,38262.13.22
2000476,64323.012,1633,84064.43.05
2010549,92325.411,3933,90569.62.69
2020612,31627.510,8334,19372.32.31
2030665,65230.110,6714,85974.62.11
2040707,16033.110,1035,86476.11.98
2050733,90435.89,4166,79777.51.89
2060747,61238.28,9267,34379.11.85
2070752,82740.48,4097,80480.51.81
2080748,83842.47,8138,31381.91.78
2090732,50344.17,2648,75283.21.76
2100709,00645.46,7868,80984.51.74

Rows from 2024 on are UN projections (medium variant), shown in italics.

The UN estimates every country and area within its present borders for every year since 1950, also for years before it became independent or took its present shape. Figures for earlier years therefore describe the people who lived on today’s territory.

Sources: World Population Prospects 2024, UN DESA Population Division (CC BY 3.0 IGO).

All countries and areas