Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Senegal instead of El Salvador, you would:
Health
be 64.0% less likely to be obese
In El Salvador, 32.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Senegal, that number is 11.6% of people as of 2024.
be 11.4% less likely to die by suicide
El Salvador has a suicide rate of 7.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Senegal, it is 6.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 3.4 years less
In El Salvador, the average life expectancy is 72 years (68 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2024. In Senegal, that number is 69 years (67 years for men, 71 years for women) as of 2024.
see 82.5% less spent on your healthcare
El Salvador spends $1,176 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Senegal spends $206 as of 2023.
have 93.3% fewer doctors per person
El Salvador has 16.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Senegal has 1.1 as of 2023.
have 35.9% less access to essential health services
El Salvador scores 78 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Senegal scores 50 as of 2021.
Economy
be 17.3% less likely to be unemployed
In El Salvador, 3.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Senegal, that number is 2.7% as of 2025.
be 37.9% more likely to live below the poverty line
In El Salvador, 27.2% live below the poverty line as of 2023. In Senegal, however, that number is 37.5% as of 2021.
make 66.1% less money
El Salvador has a GDP per capita of $5,767 as of 2025, while in Senegal, the GDP per capita is $1,955 as of 2025.
Life
have 87.1% more children
In El Salvador, there are approximately 15.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Senegal, there are 29.2 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 6.1 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 Senegal, 237.0 women do as of 2023.
be 43.9% less likely to be literate
In El Salvador, the literacy rate is 89.8% as of 2024. In Senegal, it is 50.4% as of 2023.
be 3.3 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 Senegal, on the other hand, 28.9 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 24.5% 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 Senegal, that number is 74% of people on average (96% in urban areas, and 56% in rural areas) as of 2023.
Expenditures
spend 53.5% less on healthcare
El Salvador spends 9.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Senegal, that number is 4.3% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 85.5% more on education
El Salvador spends 3.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Senegal spends 6.2% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
Geography
see 73.0% more coastline
El Salvador has a total of 307 km of coastline. In Senegal, that number is 531 km.
Infrastructure
find 67.6% less home broadband
El Salvador has 12.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Senegal has 4.0 as of 2024.
live with 34.7% more strain on fresh water
El Salvador withdraws 12% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Senegal withdraws 16% as of 2022.
use 63.9% less electricity
El Salvador uses 1,137 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Senegal uses 410 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
emit 49.0% less CO2
El Salvador emits 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Senegal emits 0.8 tonnes as of 2024.
be 2.1 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 Senegal, it causes 65.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: El Salvador vs. Senegal
Senegal: At a glance
How big is Senegal compared to El Salvador? See an in-depth size comparison.