Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in El Salvador
El Salvador: Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income was 16.2% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in El Salvador, 1989–2023
Source: World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income econ. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in El Salvador is 16.2%, measured in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 4.1% on the previous year and down 0.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in El Salvador peaked at 26.9% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 14.4%, in 2015.
El Salvador ranks 29th of 123 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 29 years of available data.
Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in El Salvador, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1989 | 25.5% | — |
| 1991 | 24.2% | -5.1% |
| 1995 | 21.1% | -12.8% |
| 1996 | 22.0% | +4.3% |
| 1998 | 26.9% | +22.3% |
| 1999 | 24.3% | -9.7% |
| 2000 | 23.3% | -4.1% |
| 2001 | 23.6% | +1.3% |
| 2002 | 23.6% | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 24.1% | +2.1% |
| 2004 | 20.9% | -13.3% |
| 2005 | 21.3% | +1.9% |
| 2006 | 18.2% | -14.6% |
| 2007 | 16.2% | -11.0% |
| 2008 | 18.6% | +14.8% |
| 2009 | 18.5% | -0.5% |
| 2010 | 18.3% | -1.1% |
| 2011 | 15.9% | -13.1% |
| 2012 | 15.7% | -1.3% |
| 2013 | 16.3% | +3.8% |
| 2014 | 15.6% | -4.3% |
| 2015 | 14.4% | -7.7% |
| 2016 | 16.3% | +13.2% |
| 2017 | 14.5% | -11.0% |
| 2018 | 15.3% | +5.5% |
| 2019 | 14.6% | -4.6% |
| 2021 | 17.0% | +16.4% |
| 2022 | 16.9% | -0.6% |
| 2023 | 16.2% | -4.1% |
El Salvador compared with similar countries
- El Salvador's 16.2% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 14.8%, 1.1× the median. (38 countries reporting)
- El Salvador's 16.2% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 18.0%, 90% of the median. (20 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 25.5% | 25.5% | 25.5% | 1 |
| 1990s | 23.7% | 21.1% | 26.9% | 5 |
| 2000s | 20.8% | 16.2% | 24.1% | 10 |
| 2010s | 15.7% | 14.4% | 18.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 16.7% | 16.2% | 17.0% | 3 |
Countries ranked near El Salvador
More poverty & inequality data for El Salvador
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 7 surveys (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per person (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty 1.77 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 2,819 kg per hectare (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate 1.53 % change on previous year (2024)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 20.61 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 20.6% (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in El Salvador?
- Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in El Salvador was 16.2% in 2023, according to World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income econ.
- What is the highest proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income recorded in El Salvador?
- The highest recorded value was 26.9% in 1998.
- What is the lowest proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income recorded in El Salvador?
- The lowest recorded value was 14.4% in 2015.
- How does El Salvador rank for proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income?
- El Salvador ranks 29th out of 123 countries with data for 2023.
- Is proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income rising or falling in El Salvador?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this El Salvador data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income econ, published as part of Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
The percentage of people in the population who live in households whose per capita income or consumption is below half of the median income or consumption per capita. The median is measured at 2021 Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) using the Poverty and Inequality Platform (http://www.pip.worldbank.org). For some countries, medians are not reported due to grouped and/or confidential data. The reference year is the year in which the underlying household survey data was collected. In cases for which the data collection period bridged two calendar years, the first year in which data were collected is reported.