Costa Rica vs El Salvador: People using improved drinking water sources

Costa Rica
0.0879 people
in 2024
El Salvador
0.1289 people
in 2024
Costa Rica rank
187th
El Salvador rank
185th

People using improved drinking water sources over time

  • Costa Rica
  • El Salvador
0200.0k400.0k600.0k200020122024

How they compare

El Salvador currently reports 0.1289 people against 0.0879 people in Costa Rica, a difference of 0.041 people.

That makes El Salvador's figure about 1.5 times Costa Rica's.

The two have swapped places 2 times across 25 shared years of data; in 2000 it was El Salvador ahead.

Costa Rica ranks 187th and El Salvador ranks 185th of 231 countries.

El Salvador has averaged higher in every one of the 3 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade Costa Rica El Salvador Difference Ahead
2000s 60,988 people 395,287 people 334,299 people El Salvador
2010s 16,665 people 127,042 people 110,377 people El Salvador
2020s 0.0693 people 543.8 people 543.73 people El Salvador

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher people using improved drinking water sources, Costa Rica or El Salvador?
El Salvador, at 0.1289 people against 0.0879 people in Costa Rica as of 2024.
What is the difference in people using improved drinking water sources between Costa Rica and El Salvador?
0.041 people, with El Salvador ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Costa Rica and El Salvador?
25 years are reported by both, from 2000 to 2024.
How do Costa Rica and El Salvador rank globally for people using improved drinking water sources?
Costa Rica ranks 187th and El Salvador ranks 185th of 231 countries.
Where does this data come from?
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as People using improved drinking water sources. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Costa Rica vs El Salvador: People using improved drinking water sources. Statizoid, drawing on WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 15 September 2026, from https://environment.statizoid.com/compare/number-of-people-in-the-world-with-and-without-access-to-improved-water-sources/costa-rica/el-salvador/

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<a href="https://environment.statizoid.com/compare/number-of-people-in-the-world-with-and-without-access-to-improved-water-sources/costa-rica/el-salvador/">Costa Rica vs El Salvador: People using improved drinking water sources</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
People using improved drinking water sources
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
231 places, 5,586 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Number of people using only unimproved drinking water sources.