Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Lesotho instead of El Salvador, you would:
Health
be 30.9% less likely to be obese
In El Salvador, 32.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 22.2% of people as of 2024.
be 42.8 times more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In El Salvador, 0.4% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 17.1% of people as of 2024.
live 14.5 years less
In El Salvador, the average life expectancy is 72 years (68 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 58 years (55 years for men, 60 years for women) as of 2024.
see 67.2% less spent on your healthcare
El Salvador spends $1,176 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Lesotho spends $386 as of 2023.
have 85.5% fewer doctors per person
El Salvador has 16.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Lesotho has 2.4 as of 2022.
have 32.1% less access to essential health services
El Salvador scores 78 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Lesotho scores 53 as of 2021.
be 3.8 times more likely to die by suicide
El Salvador has a suicide rate of 7.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Lesotho, it is 28.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 4.9 times more likely to be unemployed
In El Salvador, 3.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Lesotho, that number is 16.3% as of 2025.
make 81.1% less money
El Salvador has a GDP per capita of $5,767 as of 2025, while in Lesotho, the GDP per capita is $1,089 as of 2025.
Life
have 52.3% more children
In El Salvador, there are approximately 15.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Lesotho, there are 23.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 12.3 times 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 Lesotho, 478.0 women do as of 2023.
be 6.4 times 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 Lesotho, on the other hand, 56.3 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 41.7% less likely to have access to electricity
In El Salvador, approximately 98% of people have electricity access (99% in urban areas, and 97% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Lesotho, that number is 57% of people on average (85% in urban areas, and 45% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 22.1% less likely to have internet access
In El Salvador, approximately 66.5% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Lesotho, about 51.8% do as of 2024.
be 14.8% less likely to have access to drinking water
In El Salvador, approximately 92% of people have access to drinking water (95% in urban areas, and 80% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Lesotho, that number is 78% of people on average (95% in urban areas, and 71% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 99.4% more on education
El Salvador spends 3.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Lesotho spends 6.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
spend 35.7% more on healthcare
El Salvador spends 9.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Lesotho, that number is 12.6% of GDP as of 2023.
Infrastructure
live with 78.7% less strain on fresh water
El Salvador withdraws 12% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Lesotho withdraws 3% as of 2022.
find 97.0% less home broadband
El Salvador has 12.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Lesotho has 0.4 as of 2024.
Environment
emit 71.5% less CO2
El Salvador emits 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Lesotho emits 0.4 tonnes as of 2024.
be 3.2 times more likely to die from air pollution
In El Salvador, air pollution causes 31.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Lesotho, it causes 100.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: El Salvador vs. Lesotho
Lesotho: At a glance
How big is Lesotho compared to El Salvador? See an in-depth size comparison.