World Factbook
Suriname
Republiek Suriname
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Area
land
156,000 sq km
water
7,820 sq km
total
163,820 sq km
Climate
tropical; moderated by trade winds
Terrain
mostly rolling hills; narrow coastal plain with swamps
Land use
other
7.9% (2023 est.)
forest
91.7% (2023 est.)
agricultural land
0.4% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: arable land
arable land: 0.3% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent crops
permanent crops: 0% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent pasture
permanent pasture: 0.1% (2023 est.)
Location
Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between French Guiana and Guyana
Coastline
386 km
Elevation
lowest point
unnamed location in the coastal plain -2 m
highest point
Juliana Top 1,230 m
mean elevation
246 m
Irrigated land
600 sq km (2020)
Map references
South America
Land boundaries
total
1,907 km
border countries
Brazil 515 km; French Guiana 556 km; Guyana 836 km
Maritime claims
territorial sea
12 nm
exclusive economic zone
200 nm
Natural hazards
flooding
Geography - note
smallest independent country on the South American continent; mostly tropical rainforest; great diversity of flora and fauna; relatively small population, mostly along the coast
Natural resources
timber, hydropower, fish, kaolin, shrimp, bauxite, gold, and small amounts of nickel, copper, platinum, iron ore
Area - comparative
slightly larger than Georgia
Geographic coordinates
4 00 N, 56 00 W
Population distribution
population is concentrated along the northern coastal strip; the remainder of the country is sparsely populated
Major watersheds (area sq km)
Atlantic Ocean drainage
Amazon (6,145,186 sq km)