Government spending as share of GDP vs. GDP per capita in El Salvador
El Salvador: Government spending as share of GDP vs. GDP per capita was 31.4% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Government spending as share of GDP vs. GDP per capita in El Salvador, 1990–2024
Source: International Monetary Fund (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
El Salvador recorded 31.4% for government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita in 2024.
The figure is up 2.7% on the previous year and up 13.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita in El Salvador peaked at 32.7% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 15.9%, in 1990.
That places El Salvador 72nd out of 151 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Government spending as share of GDP vs. GDP per capita in El Salvador, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 15.9% | — |
| 1991 | 18.5% | +16.7% |
| 1992 | 20.8% | +12.0% |
| 1993 | 18.5% | -10.8% |
| 1994 | 18.9% | +2.2% |
| 1995 | 18.6% | -1.8% |
| 1996 | 21.0% | +13.3% |
| 1997 | 18.6% | -11.5% |
| 1998 | 19.3% | +3.6% |
| 1999 | 19.7% | +1.9% |
| 2000 | 21.0% | +6.7% |
| 2001 | 21.7% | +3.4% |
| 2002 | 22.5% | +3.8% |
| 2003 | 22.6% | +0.5% |
| 2004 | 21.5% | -5.0% |
| 2005 | 22.4% | +4.3% |
| 2006 | 23.4% | +4.4% |
| 2007 | 22.8% | -2.5% |
| 2008 | 24.5% | +7.5% |
| 2009 | 26.0% | +5.7% |
| 2010 | 25.6% | -1.4% |
| 2011 | 25.3% | -1.2% |
| 2012 | 27.4% | +8.3% |
| 2013 | 28.5% | +4.1% |
| 2014 | 27.6% | -3.1% |
| 2015 | 27.1% | -1.8% |
| 2016 | 27.5% | +1.3% |
| 2017 | 28.1% | +2.3% |
| 2018 | 27.6% | -1.7% |
| 2019 | 27.8% | +0.6% |
| 2020 | 32.7% | +17.7% |
| 2021 | 31.1% | -4.9% |
| 2022 | 28.7% | -7.8% |
| 2023 | 30.5% | +6.5% |
| 2024 | 31.4% | +2.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 19.0% | 15.9% | 21.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 22.8% | 21.0% | 26.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 27.2% | 25.3% | 28.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 30.9% | 28.7% | 32.7% | 5 |
Countries ranked near El Salvador
More economy & growth data for El Salvador
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 1.92 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 2.3 Percent per annum (2029)
- Services, value added (current US$), annual growth rate 2.89 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.5887 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per capita 3,395 current US$ per person (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), annual growth rate 2.89 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), per unit of GDP 0.5887 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), per capita 3,395 current LCU per person (2025)
- Services, value added (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 1.88 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.4841 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita in El Salvador?
- Government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita in El Salvador was 31.4% in 2024, according to International Monetary Fund (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita recorded in El Salvador?
- The highest recorded value was 32.7% in 2020.
- What is the lowest government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita recorded in El Salvador?
- The lowest recorded value was 15.9% in 1990.
- How does El Salvador rank for government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita?
- El Salvador ranks 72nd out of 151 countries with data for 2024.
- Is government spending as share of gdp vs. gdp per capita rising or falling in El Salvador?
- Over the last ten years it is up 13.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this El Salvador data come from?
- The figures come from International Monetary Fund (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Government spending as share of GDP vs. GDP per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Sum of all the money spent by the government on goods and services, as a percentage of GDP. It includes interest paid on government debt.