Human Development & Quality of Life in El Salvador
Human Development
A 2023 HDI of 0.678 puts El Salvador at UNDP rank 132, classified as medium human development. The headline needs context: The income component uses GNI per capita of $10,595 in 2021 PPP dollars. Another part of the dashboard shows that the GII reading of 0.362 (rank 92) is an important counterpoint to the aggregate HDI.
What sits inside El Salvador's HDI
For El Salvador, health contributes through life expectancy of 72.1; education through 11.1 expected and 7.3 mean years of schooling; and income through GNI per capita of $10,595 in 2021 PPP dollars. Those are the published inputs behind the 2023 HDI.
Inequality changes the headline
For El Salvador, IHDI asks how the HDI changes once unequal achievement across people is considered, the adjustment is about distribution rather than subjective well-being.
Gender and planetary-pressure adjustments
Alongside the headline HDI, the published data for El Salvador include GDI 0.983, GII 0.362, PHDI 0.638. Reading them together is useful, but combining them would obscure their different definitions.
Quality-of-life coverage is conditional
For El Salvador, the page has no verified OECD life-satisfaction observation to report. No proxy is inserted for a value the source does not report.
What El Salvador's numbers say together
Taken alongside HDI, El Salvador's profile includes IHDI 0.555 with a 18.1% loss; PHDI 0.638 after a 5.9% adjustment; GDI 0.983. These measures remain distinct because they measure different aspects of development.
Within the UNDP framework, the headline UNDP result for El Salvador is HDI 0.678, rank 132, for 2023. Broader quality-of-life indicators remain outside that index.
The IHDI is 0.555, and UNDP reports an overall loss of 18.1% relative to the headline index.
The GDI value is 0.983 in group 1; it should be read alongside, not merged into, HDI.
The PHDI is 0.638, with a 5.9% adjustment from the HDI value in UNDP's 2023 table.
Frequently asked questions
What is El Salvador's HDI?
The UNDP table records El Salvador at 0.678 on HDI in 2023, with global rank 132.
How does inequality affect El Salvador's HDI?
After the inequality adjustment, El Salvador's index falls to 0.555; UNDP quantifies the overall loss at 18.1%.
Why is there no life satisfaction score on this page?
This profile does not fill the quality-of-life section for El Salvador simply to complete the layout. No proxy is inserted for a value the source does not report.
Is HDI the same as quality of life?
No. UNDP's HDI focuses on longevity, education and income. Life satisfaction remains distinct from the health, education and income dimensions used by HDI. For a like-for-like reading, separate the measure from subjective well-being before comparing it with a quality-of-life observation.
Sources & methodology
Sources for the development indicators and definitions shown above.
View sources used for this page
Primary source for 2023 HDI and its components, plus IHDI, GDI, GII and PHDI where reported.
Report edition underlying the 2023 human-development indices and ranking.
Data note: Reference years are shown with each indicator; unavailable observations remain unfilled.