Suriname Population
Suriname had an estimated population of 639,850 in mid-2025 (World Bank), making it the 168th most populous of 217 countries and territories, with 0.01% of everyone alive. The counter above projects that figure forward at the current growth rate of +0.85% a year.
Suriname at a glance
How Suriname's population is changing
Suriname's population is growing: +0.85% a year, which works out to about +5,442 people per year, or +15 a day. Births (17.2 per 1,000) and deaths (6.8 per 1,000) alone would give +1.03% a year; net migration removes about 967 people a year (−0.15%). Roughly one in every 12,840 people on Earth lives in Suriname.
Population of Suriname since 1960
In 1960, Suriname had 263,918 people. By 2025 that was 639,850 — 2.4× larger. The fastest growth came between 1960 and 1970, when the population rose by 44%.
| Year | Population | Change vs previous row |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 263,918 | — |
| 1970 | 379,442 | +43.8% |
| 1980 | 375,377 | −1.1% |
| 1990 | 412,493 | +9.9% |
| 2000 | 476,643 | +15.6% |
| 2010 | 549,923 | +15.4% |
| 2020 | 612,317 | +11.3% |
| 2025 | 639,850 | +4.5% |
Suriname from 1800 to 2100
Modelled estimates put Suriname at about 80,721 people in 1800; the UN estimates 639,860 in 2025 (8× 1800) and projects 709,001 for 2100 in its medium scenario. The population is projected to peak around 2071 at 752,895 and decline afterwards.
| Year | Population | Kind |
|---|---|---|
| 1800 | 80,721 | modelled estimate |
| 1850 | 85,225 | modelled estimate |
| 1900 | 88,412 | modelled estimate |
| 1950 | 195,575 | UN estimate |
| 2000 | 476,647 | UN estimate |
| 2025 | 639,860 | UN projection |
| 2050 | 733,907 | UN projection |
| 2075 | 752,067 | UN projection |
| 2100 | 709,001 | UN projection |
Country live/base figures use World Bank estimates; this historical/future chart uses a separate UN series and need not match the World Bank base in overlapping years. Before 1950: HYDE 3.3 / Gapminder reconstructions via Our World in Data — historical modelling, not censuses. 1950–2023: UN World Population Prospects 2024. 2024–2100: UN medium projection. Open the time machine to see the whole map in any year.
Largest listed places in Suriname
9 records sorted by displayed base population. Definitions vary (province/administrative unit, UN urban centre or GeoNames settlement); this is not a harmonised city ranking. Shares use World Bank 2025 country population 639,850. Dates and boundaries may differ. Overlapping entities are not summed.
| # | Place | Population | Definition | Share | Source / reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paramaribo | 252,581 | UN urban centre | 39.48% | UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; 2025 annual estimate |
| 2 | Lelydorp | 18,223 | GeoNames settlement | 2.85% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 3 | Brokopondo | 14,662 | GeoNames settlement | 2.29% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 4 | Nieuw Nickerie | 12,818 | GeoNames settlement | 2.00% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 5 | Meerzorg | 12,405 | GeoNames settlement | 1.94% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 6 | Moengo | 10,834 | GeoNames settlement | 1.69% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 7 | Tamanredjo | 6,601 | GeoNames settlement | 1.03% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 8 | Jarikaba | 5,963 | GeoNames settlement | 0.93% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
| 9 | Alkmaar | 5,561 | GeoNames settlement | 0.87% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
How Suriname compares
Suriname has almost the same population as Montenegro (623,129).
| Rank | Country | Population | vs Suriname | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #166 |  Luxembourg | 686,970 | +7% | compare → |
| #167 |  Macau | 685,900 | +7% | compare → |
| #169 |  Montenegro | 623,129 | −3% | compare → |
| #170 |  Malta | 579,704 | −9% | compare → |
Compare Suriname with any country →
Same region (Latin America & Caribbean): Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Peru, Venezuela.
Explore around Suriname
Land neighbours (3)
Brazil 212,812,405 · 332.6× the population · compare
France 68,720,337 · 107.4× the population · compare
Guyana 835,986 · 1.3× the population · compare
Suriname's 3 neighbours together hold 282,368,728 people — 441.3× Suriname's population. The most populous is Brazil (212,812,405).
In its region
Suriname is the 25th most populous of the 42 economies in Latin America & Caribbean, holding 0.1% of the region's 666,592,570 people.
Rankings featuring Suriname
Cities
Paramaribo, Lelydorp, Brokopondo, Nieuw Nickerie, Meerzorg, Moengo, Tamanredjo, Jarikaba — all Suriname's cities on the map.
World population history · The world when you were born · Suriname when you were born · Time machine · Embed this live counter on your site
About these numbers
Population, growth, birth and death rates, migration, density, age structure, life expectancy, fertility and GDP per capita come from the World Bank Indicators API (latest available year shown beside each figure). The live counter applies the annual growth rate continuously from 1 July 2025 — a model, not a measurement. City populations are the latest census or official estimate held by GeoNames and are not projected. Sub-city units are folded into their parent city.
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Read this country carefully
This page is a structured reference entry. Its sources, geographic definition and reference dates determine what the figures mean; it is not independent reporting about the causes of change. Read the accompanying explanation before comparing different places or vintages.