El Salvador
Government debt in El Salvador
Government debt in El Salvador: 43.3% of GDP in 1991 and 87.6% of GDP in 2025, by IMF estimates.
- Latest, 2025
- 87.6% of GDP
- Since 1991
- +44.2 percentage points
- Rank, 2025
- 26 of 149
- counting from the highest
- Projected, 2031
- 80.3% of GDP
- IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026)
% of GDP · IMF
What the numbers say
- The IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026) puts it at 80.3% of GDP in 2031.
- The highest was 95.4% of GDP in 2020, the lowest 25.7% of GDP in 1998.
Every year
% of GDP · IMF
| Year | El Salvador |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 87.6 |
| 2024 | 87.7 |
| 2023 | 83.9 |
| 2022 | 83.7 |
| 2021 | 88 |
| 2020 | 95.4 |
| 2019 | 77.9 |
| 2018 | 77 |
| 2017 | 77.1 |
| 2016 | 75.2 |
| 2015 | 73.5 |
| 2014 | 71.8 |
| 2013 | 69.7 |
| 2012 | 70 |
| 2011 | 65.6 |
| 2010 | 66.8 |
| 2009 | 65.8 |
| 2008 | 54.2 |
| 2007 | 52.2 |
| 2006 | 52.6 |
| 2005 | 46.3 |
| 2004 | 46.8 |
| 2003 | 46 |
| 2002 | 43.8 |
| 2001 | 37.8 |
| 2000 | 29.6 |
| 1999 | 28 |
| 1998 | 25.7 |
| 1997 | 27.8 |
| 1996 | 28.6 |
| 1995 | 28 |
| 1994 | 30.6 |
| 1993 | 31.9 |
| 1992 | 36.4 |
| 1991 | 43.3 |
IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026) · 2026–2031
| Year | El Salvador |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 85 |
| 2027 | 89.2 |
| 2028 | 87.3 |
| 2029 | 85 |
| 2030 | 82.8 |
| 2031 | 80.3 |
Good to know
- What the government owes, as a share of the economy’s yearly output.
- Source: IMF, World Economic Outlook, October 2026.
- The dashed line is the IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026), a scenario rather than a forecast.
- Ranks count the 149 countries with a value in 2025, highest first.
How the layers work, where their data comes from and what they can’t tell you: Countries through time
El Salvador in numbers
Every measure for El Salvador on one page
Health
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Military
- Military spending1.34% of GDP in 2025
- Military spending in US dollars$489M in 2025
- Military spending per person$77 in 2025
- Military share of state spending4.4% of government spending in 2025
- Armed forces personnel42,000 people in 2020
- National power0.05% of world capability in 2022
- Armed forces, share of workers1.62% of the labour force in 2020
- Arms imports3 million TIV in 2025
- Arms exports1 million TIV in 1991