Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Ecuador instead of El Salvador, you would:
Health
live 5.3 years longer
In El Salvador, the average life expectancy is 72 years (68 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2024. In Ecuador, that number is 78 years (75 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2024.
be 10.0% less likely to be obese
In El Salvador, 32.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Ecuador, that number is 28.9% of people as of 2024.
have 43.1% more doctors per person
El Salvador has 16.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Ecuador has 23.1 as of 2020.
Economy
be 21.3% less likely to live below the poverty line
In El Salvador, 27.2% live below the poverty line as of 2023. In Ecuador, however, that number is 21.4% as of 2025.
make 23.6% more money
El Salvador has a GDP per capita of $5,767 as of 2025, while in Ecuador, the GDP per capita is $7,125 as of 2025.
Life
be 41.0% more 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 Ecuador, 55.0 women do as of 2023.
be 23.9% more likely to die during infancy
In El Salvador, approximately 8.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Ecuador, on the other hand, 10.9 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 16.1% more likely to have internet access
In El Salvador, approximately 66.5% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Ecuador, about 77.2% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 18.6% less on healthcare
El Salvador spends 9.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Ecuador, that number is 7.6% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 11.1% more on education
El Salvador spends 3.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Ecuador spends 3.7% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
Geography
see 7.3 times more coastline
El Salvador has a total of 307 km of coastline. In Ecuador, that number is 2,237 km.
Safety
be 5.8 times more likely to be murdered
El Salvador has a homicide rate of 7.9 per 100,000 people as of 2022. In Ecuador, that number is 45.7 per 100,000 as of 2023.
Infrastructure
find 38.4% more home broadband
El Salvador has 12.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Ecuador has 17.2 as of 2024.
live with 43.9% less strain on fresh water
El Salvador withdraws 12% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Ecuador withdraws 7% as of 2022.
use 47.4% more electricity
El Salvador uses 1,137 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Ecuador uses 1,676 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 25.8% less likely to die from air pollution
In El Salvador, air pollution causes 31.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Ecuador, it causes 23.0 as of 2019.
emit 74.8% more CO2
El Salvador emits 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Ecuador emits 2.6 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook, United Nations SDG Indicators (2019). How we calculate this
Compare further: El Salvador vs. Ecuador
Ecuador: At a glance
How big is Ecuador compared to El Salvador? See an in-depth size comparison.