People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in El Salvador

El Salvador: People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities was 36,926 people in 2024. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2024)
36,926 people
Change on year
down 26.4%
World rank
98th
of 175 countries
All-time high
491,127 people
in 2000
All-time low
36,926 people
in 2024
Years of data
25
2000–2024

People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in El Salvador, 2000–2024

0100.0k200.0k300.0k400.0k500.0k2000201220242000: 491.1k people2001: 486.5k people2002: 481.4k people2003: 456.8k people2004: 432.1k people2005: 407.7k people2006: 383.5k people2007: 360.0k people2008: 334.8k people2009: 310.4k people2010: 286.8k people2011: 264.1k people2012: 242.2k people2013: 221.1k people2014: 200.8k people2015: 181.0k people2016: 162.0k people2017: 143.7k people2018: 126.2k people2019: 109.3k people2020: 93.4k people2021: 78.3k people2022: 63.9k people2023: 50.2k people2024: 36.9k people

Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.

Analysis

El Salvador recorded 36,926 people for people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 25 years on record.

That represents a change of down 26.4% on the previous year and down 81.6% over ten years.

Over the whole period, people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in El Salvador peaked at 491,127 people in 2000 and was at its lowest, 36,926 people, in 2024.

That places El Salvador 98th out of 175 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 414,441 people 310,391 people 491,127 people 10
2010s 193,725 people 109,314 people 286,811 people 10
2020s 64,555 people 36,926 people 93,417 people 5

Countries ranked near El Salvador

  1. 95 Tajikistan 41,064 people compare
  2. 97 Croatia 39,802 people compare
  3. 99 Cape Verde 36,878 people compare
  4. 100 Paraguay 33,929 people compare
  5. 101 Saudi Arabia 31,473 people compare

See the full ranking of 175 places →

More reference data data for El Salvador

All data for El Salvador →

Frequently asked questions

What is people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in El Salvador?
People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities in El Salvador was 36,926 people in 2024, according to WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities recorded in El Salvador?
The highest recorded value was 491,127 people in 2000.
What is the lowest people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities recorded in El Salvador?
The lowest recorded value was 36,926 people in 2024.
How does El Salvador rank for people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities?
El Salvador ranks 98th out of 175 countries with data for 2024.
Is people in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities rising or falling in El Salvador?
Over the last ten years it is down 81.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this El Salvador data come from?
The figures come from WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
People in rural areas not using improved sanitation facilities
Unit
people
Source
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
175 places, 4,269 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

If no improved sanitation facility is available, people might practice open defecation or use unimproved sanitation facilities.