If you lived in Albania instead of El Salvador, you would:

Health

live 7.5 years longer

In El Salvador, the average life expectancy is 72 years (68 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2024. In Albania, that number is 80 years (78 years for men, 82 years for women) as of 2024.

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be 25.0% less likely to be obese

In El Salvador, 32.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Albania, that number is 24.1% of people as of 2024.

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see 24.6% more spent on your healthcare

El Salvador spends $1,176 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Albania spends $1,465 as of 2023.

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have 16.3% more doctors per person

El Salvador has 16.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Albania has 18.8 as of 2020.

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be 64.0% less likely to die by suicide

El Salvador has a suicide rate of 7.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Albania, it is 2.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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have 17.9% less access to essential health services

El Salvador scores 78 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Albania scores 64 as of 2021.

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Economy

be 27.6% less likely to live below the poverty line

In El Salvador, 27.2% live below the poverty line as of 2023. In Albania, however, that number is 19.7% as of 2022.

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make 2.3 times more money

El Salvador has a GDP per capita of $5,767 as of 2025, while in Albania, the GDP per capita is $12,998 as of 2025.

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be 3.3 times more likely to be unemployed

In El Salvador, 3.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Albania, that number is 10.9% as of 2025.

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Life

be 82.1% less likely to die during childbirth

In El Salvador, approximately 39.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Albania, 7.0 women do as of 2023.

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have 35.1% fewer children

In El Salvador, there are approximately 15.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Albania, there are 10.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

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Basic Needs

be 29.2% more likely to have internet access

In El Salvador, approximately 66.5% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Albania, about 85.9% do as of 2024.

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Expenditures

spend 24.1% less on healthcare

El Salvador spends 9.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Albania, that number is 7.0% of GDP as of 2023.

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Geography

see 17.9% more coastline

El Salvador has a total of 307 km of coastline. In Albania, that number is 362 km.

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Safety

be 82.4% less likely to be murdered

El Salvador has a homicide rate of 7.9 per 100,000 people as of 2022. In Albania, that number is 1.4 per 100,000 as of 2023.

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be 49.8% less likely to die in a road accident

In El Salvador, road accidents kill 21.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Albania, they kill 10.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.

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Infrastructure

find 99.7% more home broadband

El Salvador has 12.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Albania has 24.9 as of 2024.

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live with 60.4% less strain on fresh water

El Salvador withdraws 12% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Albania withdraws 5% as of 2022.

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use 2.5 times more electricity

El Salvador uses 1,137 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Albania uses 2,892 kWh as of 2023.

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Environment

be 90.3% more likely to die from air pollution

In El Salvador, air pollution causes 31.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Albania, it causes 59.0 as of 2019.

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emit 18.5% more CO2

El Salvador emits 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Albania emits 1.8 tonnes as of 2024.

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Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this

Albania: At a glance

Albania is a sovereign country in Europe, with a total land area of approximately 27,398 sq km. Albania declared its independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1912, but was conquered by Italy in 1939, and occupied by Germany in 1943. Communist partisans took over the country in 1944. Albania allied itself first with the USSR (until 1960), and then with China (to 1978). In the early 1990s, Albania ended 46 years of xenophobic communist rule and established a multiparty democracy. The transition has proven challenging as successive governments have tried to deal with high unemployment, widespread corruption, dilapidated infrastructure, powerful organized crime networks, and combative political opponents. Albania has made progress in its democratic development since first holding multiparty elections in 1991, but deficiencies remain. International observers judged elections to be largely free and fair since the restoration of political stability following the collapse of pyramid schemes in 1997; however, each of Albania's post-communist elections have been marred by claims of electoral fraud. The 2009 general elections resulted in a coalition government, the first such in the country's history. In 2013, general elections achieved a peaceful transition of power and a second successive coalition government. Albania joined NATO in April 2009 and is a potential candidate for EU accession. Although Albania's economy continues to grow, it has slowed, and the country is still one of the poorest in Europe. A large informal economy and an inadequate energy and transportation infrastructure remain obstacles.
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