El Salvador vs Nicaragua: Urban area over the long-term
El Salvador
539.22 km² per grid cell
in 2025
Nicaragua
500.71 km² per grid cell
in 2025
El Salvador rank
121st
Nicaragua rank
123rd
Urban area over the long-term over time
- El Salvador
- Nicaragua
How they compare
El Salvador currently reports 539.22 km² per grid cell against 500.71 km² per grid cell in Nicaragua, a difference of 38.51 km² per grid cell.
That makes El Salvador's figure about 1.1 times Nicaragua's.
The two have swapped places 5 times across 108 shared years of data; in 1000 it was Nicaragua ahead.
El Salvador ranks 121st and Nicaragua ranks 123rd of 202 countries.
Across the 40 decades both report, El Salvador averaged higher in 15 and Nicaragua in 25.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | El Salvador | Nicaragua | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1000s | 0.0002 km² per grid cell | 0.001 km² per grid cell | 0.0009 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1100s | 0.0005 km² per grid cell | 0.0033 km² per grid cell | 0.0028 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1200s | 0.0017 km² per grid cell | 0.0109 km² per grid cell | 0.0091 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1300s | 0.0056 km² per grid cell | 0.0355 km² per grid cell | 0.0299 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1400s | 0.0185 km² per grid cell | 0.1162 km² per grid cell | 0.0978 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1500s | 0.0605 km² per grid cell | 0.3804 km² per grid cell | 0.3199 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1600s | 0.198 km² per grid cell | 0.5707 km² per grid cell | 0.3727 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1700s | 0.648 km² per grid cell | 0.856 km² per grid cell | 0.208 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1710s | 0.7081 km² per grid cell | 1.03 km² per grid cell | 0.3252 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1720s | 0.8079 km² per grid cell | 1.21 km² per grid cell | 0.4046 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1730s | 0.9255 km² per grid cell | 1.42 km² per grid cell | 0.4974 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1740s | 1.07 km² per grid cell | 1.67 km² per grid cell | 0.6038 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1750s | 1.24 km² per grid cell | 1.96 km² per grid cell | 0.7228 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1760s | 1.45 km² per grid cell | 2.3 km² per grid cell | 0.8506 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1770s | 1.72 km² per grid cell | 2.7 km² per grid cell | 0.9791 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1780s | 2.27 km² per grid cell | 3.17 km² per grid cell | 0.8935 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1790s | 2.94 km² per grid cell | 3.72 km² per grid cell | 0.7775 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1800s | 3.73 km² per grid cell | 4.36 km² per grid cell | 0.626 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1810s | 4.68 km² per grid cell | 5.12 km² per grid cell | 0.4332 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1820s | 5.81 km² per grid cell | 6 km² per grid cell | 0.1927 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1830s | 7.57 km² per grid cell | 7.79 km² per grid cell | 0.2181 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1840s | 9.68 km² per grid cell | 9.96 km² per grid cell | 0.2721 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1850s | 12.19 km² per grid cell | 12.72 km² per grid cell | 0.5305 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1860s | 16 km² per grid cell | 14.79 km² per grid cell | 1.21 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 1870s | 20.33 km² per grid cell | 17.14 km² per grid cell | 3.19 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 1880s | 26.27 km² per grid cell | 21.39 km² per grid cell | 4.88 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 1890s | 31.39 km² per grid cell | 26.73 km² per grid cell | 4.66 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 1900s | 34.23 km² per grid cell | 33.18 km² per grid cell | 1.05 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 1910s | 39.27 km² per grid cell | 40.21 km² per grid cell | 0.9361 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1920s | 48.47 km² per grid cell | 45.78 km² per grid cell | 2.68 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 1930s | 48.47 km² per grid cell | 51.77 km² per grid cell | 3.3 km² per grid cell | Nicaragua |
| 1940s | 54.36 km² per grid cell | 51.77 km² per grid cell | 2.59 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 1950s | 80.8 km² per grid cell | 59.63 km² per grid cell | 21.17 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 1960s | 113.11 km² per grid cell | 80.3 km² per grid cell | 32.81 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 1970s | 160.75 km² per grid cell | 121.24 km² per grid cell | 39.52 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 1980s | 223.99 km² per grid cell | 173.72 km² per grid cell | 50.27 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 1990s | 310.24 km² per grid cell | 238.62 km² per grid cell | 71.62 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 2000s | 401.62 km² per grid cell | 310.74 km² per grid cell | 90.88 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 2010s | 476.25 km² per grid cell | 398.95 km² per grid cell | 77.3 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
| 2020s | 527.24 km² per grid cell | 479.36 km² per grid cell | 47.88 km² per grid cell | El Salvador |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher urban area over the long-term, El Salvador or Nicaragua?
- El Salvador, at 539.22 km² per grid cell against 500.71 km² per grid cell in Nicaragua as of 2025.
- What is the difference in urban area over the long-term between El Salvador and Nicaragua?
- 38.51 km² per grid cell, with El Salvador ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for El Salvador and Nicaragua?
- 108 years are reported by both, from 1000 to 2025.
- How do El Salvador and Nicaragua rank globally for urban area over the long-term?
- El Salvador ranks 121st and Nicaragua ranks 123rd of 202 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- HYDE (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Urban area over the long-term. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Total built-up area of a country over time.