Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Somalia instead of El Salvador, you would:
Health
be 53.6% less likely to be obese
In El Salvador, 32.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Somalia, that number is 14.9% of people as of 2024.
live 13.3 years less
In El Salvador, the average life expectancy is 72 years (68 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2024. In Somalia, that number is 59 years (56 years for men, 62 years for women) as of 2024.
see 95.6% less spent on your healthcare
El Salvador spends $1,176 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Somalia spends $52 as of 2023.
have 65.4% less access to essential health services
El Salvador scores 78 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Somalia scores 27 as of 2021.
Economy
be 5.7 times more likely to be unemployed
In El Salvador, 3.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Somalia, that number is 18.9% as of 2025.
be 2.0 times more likely to live below the poverty line
In El Salvador, 27.2% live below the poverty line as of 2023. In Somalia, however, that number is 55.4% as of 2022.
make 88.5% less money
El Salvador has a GDP per capita of $5,767 as of 2025, while in Somalia, the GDP per capita is $661 as of 2025.
Life
have 2.7 times more children
In El Salvador, there are approximately 15.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Somalia, there are 42.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 14.4 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 Somalia, 563.0 women do as of 2023.
be 39.7% less likely to be literate
In El Salvador, the literacy rate is 89.8% as of 2024. In Somalia, it is 54.1% as of 2022.
be 7.4 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 Somalia, on the other hand, 65.4 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 Somalia, that number is 50% of people on average (79% in urban areas, and 24% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 58.0% less likely to have internet access
In El Salvador, approximately 66.5% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Somalia, about 27.9% do as of 2024.
be 17.8% 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 Somalia, that number is 75% of people on average (84% in urban areas, and 68% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 59.7% less on healthcare
El Salvador spends 9.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Somalia, that number is 3.7% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 9.9 times more coastline
El Salvador has a total of 307 km of coastline. In Somalia, that number is 3,025 km.
Infrastructure
find 94.2% less home broadband
El Salvador has 12.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Somalia has 0.7 as of 2023.
live with 2.0 times more strain on fresh water
El Salvador withdraws 12% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Somalia withdraws 25% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 96.7% less CO2
El Salvador emits 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Somalia emits 0.1 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 Somalia, it causes 64.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: El Salvador vs. Somalia
Somalia: At a glance
How big is Somalia compared to El Salvador? See an in-depth size comparison.