Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Mauritania instead of El Salvador, you would:
Health
be 25.1% less likely to be obese
In El Salvador, 32.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 24.1% of people as of 2024.
be 64.5% less likely to die by suicide
El Salvador has a suicide rate of 7.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Mauritania, it is 2.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 3.6 years less
In El Salvador, the average life expectancy is 72 years (68 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2024. In Mauritania, that number is 69 years (67 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024.
see 74.3% less spent on your healthcare
El Salvador spends $1,176 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Mauritania spends $302 as of 2023.
have 83.8% fewer doctors per person
El Salvador has 16.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Mauritania has 2.6 as of 2022.
have 48.7% less access to essential health services
El Salvador scores 78 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Mauritania scores 40 as of 2021.
Economy
be 3.1 times more likely to be unemployed
In El Salvador, 3.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Mauritania, that number is 10.3% as of 2025.
make 61.9% less money
El Salvador has a GDP per capita of $5,767 as of 2025, while in Mauritania, the GDP per capita is $2,198 as of 2025.
Life
have 2.2 times more children
In El Salvador, there are approximately 15.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Mauritania, there are 34.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 9.8 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 Mauritania, 381.0 women do as of 2023.
be 25.4% less likely to be literate
In El Salvador, the literacy rate is 89.8% as of 2024. In Mauritania, it is 67.0% as of 2021.
be 3.4 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 Mauritania, on the other hand, 30.2 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 48.8% 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 Mauritania, that number is 50% of people on average (94% in urban areas, and 1% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 31.1% less likely to have internet access
In El Salvador, approximately 66.5% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Mauritania, about 45.8% do as of 2024.
be 15.7% 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 Mauritania, that number is 77% of people on average (90% in urban areas, and 59% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 53.3% less on healthcare
El Salvador spends 9.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Mauritania, that number is 4.3% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 2.3 times more on education
El Salvador spends 3.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Mauritania spends 7.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
Geography
see 2.5 times more coastline
El Salvador has a total of 307 km of coastline. In Mauritania, that number is 754 km.
Safety
be 87.3% less likely to be murdered
El Salvador has a homicide rate of 7.9 per 100,000 people as of 2022. In Mauritania, that number is 1.0 per 100,000 as of 2020.
be 55.8% less likely to die in a road accident
In El Salvador, road accidents kill 21.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Mauritania, they kill 9.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 92.4% less home broadband
El Salvador has 12.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Mauritania has 0.9 as of 2024.
Environment
emit 35.8% less CO2
El Salvador emits 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Mauritania emits 1.0 tonnes as of 2024.
be 100.0% more likely to die from air pollution
In El Salvador, air pollution causes 31.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Mauritania, it causes 62.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook (2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: El Salvador vs. Mauritania
Mauritania: At a glance
How big is Mauritania compared to El Salvador? See an in-depth size comparison.