El Salvador's military expenditure (% of GDP) was 1.34% in 2025, the latest year in the World Bank's World Development Indicators. That is up 0.28 percentage points from 1.06% in 2015.
Key figures
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest | 1.34% | 2025 |
| Five years earlier | 1.38% | 2020 |
| Ten years earlier | 1.06% | 2015 |
| Highest | 6.59% | 1985 |
| Lowest | 0.63% | 1970 |
| Average since 2016 | 1.25% | 2016–2025 |
| First recorded | 0.74% | 1965 |
What the numbers say
In 2025, El Salvador's military expenditure (% of GDP) fell 0.05 percentage points on 2024 (from 1.39% to 1.34%).
Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was +0 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.12 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
On record, the biggest yearly rise was 2.89 percentage points in 1984 and the biggest yearly fall was 2.26 percentage points in 1986. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.
From 2016 to 2025 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.04 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 72% of the movement over 10 observed years.
Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.
How it compares
In 2025, El Salvador had the 91st highest value of the 150 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.
| Value | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| El Salvador | 1.34% | 2025 |
| World | 2.48% | 2025 |
| Latin America & Caribbean | 1.07% | 2025 |
| Upper middle income | 1.87% | 2025 |
Closest to El Salvador in the 2025 ranking
- Angola — 88th of 150: 1.4%
- Congo, Dem. Rep. — 89th of 150: 1.38%
- Jamaica — 90th of 150: 1.37%
- Fiji — 92nd of 150: 1.33%
- Sri Lanka — 93rd of 150: 1.31%
- Congo, Rep. — 94th of 150: 1.31%
What this measures
Military expenditure by country as percentage of gross domestic product
Limitations: SIPRI strives to compile reliable, consistent military expenditure data by assessing multiple sources, but accuracy depends on the quality and transparency of those sources. Challenges arise from two key issues: whether reported figures reflect actual spending and how closely they match SIPRI’s definition. While data is generally accurate in developed and many developing countries, weak governance, corruption, and secret transfers in others can lead to major discrepancies. SIPRI sometimes makes estimates, when sources conflict or lack coverage, introducing uncertainty, especially for countries like China or the UAE.
Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.
All 61 values
| Year | Military expenditure (% of GDP) |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 1.34 |
| 2024 | 1.39 |
| 2023 | 1.34 |
| 2022 | 1.44 |
| 2021 | 1.21 |
| 2020 | 1.38 |
| 2019 | 1.18 |
| 2018 | 1.13 |
| 2017 | 1.04 |
| 2016 | 1.02 |
| 2015 |
Military expenditure (% of GDP) in nearby economies
More public sector data for El Salvador
- Military expenditure (current USD) — 490 million (2025)
- Military expenditure (current LCU) — 490 million (2025)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values) — 3 million (2025)
- Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure) — 4.39% (2025)
- Armed forces personnel, total — 42,000 (2020)
- Armed forces personnel (% of total labor force) — 1.62% (2020)
- Intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) — 7.9 (2022)
- Net acquisition of financial assets (current LCU) — 141.5 million (2024)
- Net acquisition of financial assets (% of GDP) — 0.41% (2024)
Reading data like this
Questions people ask
- What is El Salvador's military expenditure (% of GDP)?
- 1.34% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).
- How has it changed since 1965?
- It is up 0.6 percentage points from 0.74% in 1965. The highest value was 6.59% in 1985 and the lowest 0.63% in 1970.
- How does El Salvador rank?
- 91st highest of 150 economies with data for 2025.
- Is the latest change in military expenditure (% of GDP) unusual for El Salvador?
- In 2025, El Salvador's military expenditure (% of GDP) fell 0.05 percentage points on 2024 (from 1.39% to 1.34%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1995 to 2024), the average change was +0 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.12 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.4 standard deviations below that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.
Source
World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), uri: https://www.sipri.org/databases Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.
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