Exposure to outdoor air pollution in El Salvador
El Salvador: Exposure to outdoor air pollution was 30.7 µg/m³ in 2024. ▲ Rising
Exposure to outdoor air pollution in El Salvador, 1998–2024
Source: SatPM, Atmospheric Composition Analysis Group, Washington University in St. Louis (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in µg/m³.
Analysis
El Salvador recorded 30.7 µg/m³ for exposure to outdoor air pollution in 2024.
The figure is up 10.4% on the previous year and up 15.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, exposure to outdoor air pollution in El Salvador peaked at 31.9 µg/m³ in 1998 and was at its lowest, 22.9 µg/m³, in 2004.
El Salvador ranks 45th of 241 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 27 years of available data.
Exposure to outdoor air pollution in El Salvador, year by year
| Year | µg/m³ | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 31.9 µg/m³ | — |
| 1999 | 23.1 µg/m³ | -27.6% |
| 2000 | 26.8 µg/m³ | +16.0% |
| 2001 | 24.9 µg/m³ | -7.1% |
| 2002 | 23.3 µg/m³ | -6.4% |
| 2003 | 27.4 µg/m³ | +17.6% |
| 2004 | 22.9 µg/m³ | -16.4% |
| 2005 | 29.4 µg/m³ | +28.4% |
| 2006 | 23.8 µg/m³ | -19.0% |
| 2007 | 27 µg/m³ | +13.4% |
| 2008 | 26.9 µg/m³ | -0.4% |
| 2009 | 27.3 µg/m³ | +1.5% |
| 2010 | 29.8 µg/m³ | +9.2% |
| 2011 | 30.1 µg/m³ | +1.0% |
| 2012 | 27.7 µg/m³ | -8.0% |
| 2013 | 29.9 µg/m³ | +7.9% |
| 2014 | 26.7 µg/m³ | -10.7% |
| 2015 | 26.4 µg/m³ | -1.1% |
| 2016 | 26.7 µg/m³ | +1.1% |
| 2017 | 27.2 µg/m³ | +1.9% |
| 2018 | 26.6 µg/m³ | -2.2% |
| 2019 | 27.5 µg/m³ | +3.4% |
| 2020 | 28.4 µg/m³ | +3.3% |
| 2021 | 26.4 µg/m³ | -7.0% |
| 2022 | 26.9 µg/m³ | +1.9% |
| 2023 | 27.8 µg/m³ | +3.3% |
| 2024 | 30.7 µg/m³ | +10.4% |
El Salvador compared with similar countries
- El Salvador's 30.7 µg/m³ is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 17.15 µg/m³, 1.8× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- El Salvador's 30.7 µg/m³ is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 13.75 µg/m³, 2.2× the median. (42 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 27.5 µg/m³ | 23.1 µg/m³ | 31.9 µg/m³ | 2 |
| 2000s | 25.97 µg/m³ | 22.9 µg/m³ | 29.4 µg/m³ | 10 |
| 2010s | 27.86 µg/m³ | 26.4 µg/m³ | 30.1 µg/m³ | 10 |
| 2020s | 28.04 µg/m³ | 26.4 µg/m³ | 30.7 µg/m³ | 5 |
Countries ranked near El Salvador
- 42 Mali 31 µg/m³ compare
- 42 Togo 31 µg/m³ compare
- 44 Syria 30.8 µg/m³ compare
- 46 Uzbekistan 30 µg/m³ compare
- 47 Turkmenistan 29.1 µg/m³ compare
- 48 Guinea-Bissau 29 µg/m³ compare
More environment data for El Salvador
- Historical exposure to drought — Land soil moisture anomaly -3.31 Percentage change (2025)
- Historical exposure to drought — Cropland soil moisture anomaly -3.1 Percentage change (2025)
- Standard Deviation, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Standard Deviation 0.27 °C (2025)
- Temperature change 1.28 °C (2025)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual 2.58 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate 0.0446 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is exposure to outdoor air pollution in El Salvador?
- Exposure to outdoor air pollution in El Salvador was 30.7 µg/m³ in 2024, according to SatPM, Atmospheric Composition Analysis Group, Washington University in St. Louis (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest exposure to outdoor air pollution recorded in El Salvador?
- The highest recorded value was 31.9 µg/m³ in 1998.
- What is the lowest exposure to outdoor air pollution recorded in El Salvador?
- The lowest recorded value was 22.9 µg/m³ in 2004.
- How does El Salvador rank for exposure to outdoor air pollution?
- El Salvador ranks 45th out of 241 countries with data for 2024.
- Is exposure to outdoor air pollution rising or falling in El Salvador?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this El Salvador data come from?
- The figures come from SatPM, Atmospheric Composition Analysis Group, Washington University in St. Louis (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Exposure to outdoor air pollution. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Annual population-weighted average concentration of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in the air, measured in micrograms per cubic meter (µg/m³). Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) are particles with a diameter of 2.5 micrometers or less, which can pose significant health risks.