Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in El Salvador instead of Cuba, you would:

Health

live 4.3 years less

In Cuba, the average life expectancy is 80 years (77 years for men, 82 years for women) as of 2022. In El Salvador, that number is 75 years (72 years for men, 79 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

be 2.4 times more likely to be unemployed

In Cuba, 1.2% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In El Salvador, that number is 2.8% as of 2023.

Life

have 72.7% more children

In Cuba, there are approximately 9.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In El Salvador, there are 17.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.

be 10.6% less likely to be literate

In Cuba, the literacy rate is 99.7% as of 2021. In El Salvador, it is 89.1% as of 2019.

be 2.9 times more likely to die during infancy

In Cuba, approximately 4.1 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In El Salvador, on the other hand, 12.1 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 11.3% less likely to have internet access

In Cuba, approximately 71.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In El Salvador, about 63.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 68.0% less on education

Cuba spends 12.8% of its total GDP on education as of 2010. El Salvador spends 4.1% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 20.8% less on healthcare

Cuba spends 12.5% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In El Salvador, that number is 9.9% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 91.8% less coastline

Cuba has a total of 3,735 km of coastline. In El Salvador, that number is 307 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.

El Salvador: At a glance

El Salvador is a sovereign country in Central America/Caribbean, with a total land area of approximately 20,721 sq km. El Salvador achieved independence from Spain in 1821 and from the Central American Federation in 1839. A 12-year civil war, which cost about 75,000 lives, was brought to a close in 1992 when the government and leftist rebels signed a treaty that provided for military and political reforms.
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How big is El Salvador compared to Cuba? See an in-depth size comparison.

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