Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Mexico instead of El Salvador, you would:
Health
live 3.0 years longer
In El Salvador, the average life expectancy is 72 years (68 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2024. In Mexico, that number is 75 years (72 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2024.
see 16.4% more spent on your healthcare
El Salvador spends $1,176 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Mexico spends $1,368 as of 2023.
have 60.1% more doctors per person
El Salvador has 16.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Mexico has 25.9 as of 2022.
be 16.2% more likely to be obese
In El Salvador, 32.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Mexico, that number is 37.4% of people as of 2024.
Economy
be 19.1% less likely to be unemployed
In El Salvador, 3.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Mexico, that number is 2.7% as of 2025.
make 2.4 times more money
El Salvador has a GDP per capita of $5,767 as of 2025, while in Mexico, the GDP per capita is $13,889 as of 2025.
Life
be 37.5% 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 Mexico, on the other hand, 12.1 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 25.0% more likely to have internet access
In El Salvador, approximately 66.5% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Mexico, about 83.1% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 40.8% less on healthcare
El Salvador spends 9.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Mexico, that number is 5.5% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 22.3% more on education
El Salvador spends 3.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Mexico spends 4.1% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
Geography
see 30.4 times more coastline
El Salvador has a total of 307 km of coastline. In Mexico, that number is 9,330 km.
Safety
be 44.2% less likely to die in a road accident
In El Salvador, road accidents kill 21.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Mexico, they kill 12.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 3.1 times more likely to be murdered
El Salvador has a homicide rate of 7.9 per 100,000 people as of 2022. In Mexico, that number is 24.9 per 100,000 as of 2023.
Infrastructure
find 74.5% more home broadband
El Salvador has 12.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Mexico has 21.7 as of 2024.
use 2.3 times more electricity
El Salvador uses 1,137 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Mexico uses 2,658 kWh as of 2024.
live with 3.7 times more strain on fresh water
El Salvador withdraws 12% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Mexico withdraws 45% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 2.4 times more CO2
El Salvador emits 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Mexico emits 3.6 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook, United Nations SDG Indicators (2021). How we calculate this
Compare further: El Salvador vs. Mexico
Mexico: At a glance
How big is Mexico compared to El Salvador? See an in-depth size comparison.