What is the Population of El Salvador? El Salvador’s Population increased by 0.08% from 2021 to 2022

64.2% of the population is concentrated in 5 of the 14 departments.

By Karla Ramos  |  Apr 6th, 2023
El Salvador Population
El Salvador Population

The population of El Salvador is 6,330,947, with 61.7% of the Salvadoran population living in urban areas and 38.3% in rural territory. El Salvador’s population increased by 0.08% from 2021 to 2022, an increment of 5,120 individuals.

El Salvador has 6.6% more females than males, 53.3% to 46.7%. Nationally the country has 88 men for every 100 women. In the urban area, there are 84 men for every 100 women, and in the rural area, 93 men for every 100 women.

The population of El Salvador
2021 2022 2022 Population
Percentage
Change
2021-2022
Population 6,325,827 6,330,947 100% 5,120
Female 3,370,080 3,373,945 53.3% 3,865
Male 2,955,747 2,957,002 46.7% 1,255

El Salvador’s population growth rate is expected to slow down in the upcoming years, mainly because of all the people leaving the country for political and economic reasons.

El Salvador Population by Department

The distribution of the population by departments indicates that 64.2% of the population is concentrated in 5 of the 14 departments. San Salvador, La Libertad, Santa Ana, Sonsonate, and San Miguel account for 4,062,482 Salvadorans.

In contrast, the five least populated departments, Cabañas, San Vicente, Chalatenango, Morazan, and La Union, consolidate 930,452 people, or 14.7% of the Salvadoran population.

Population by Department
2021 2022 2022 Population
Percentage
Change
2021-2022
San Salvador 1,733,576 1,732,068 27.4% -1,508
La Libertad 797,543 800,920 12.7% 3,377
Santa Ana 560,522 560,355 8.9% -167
Sonsonate 502,727 504,581 8.0% 1,854
San Miguel 465,394 464,558 7.3% -836
Ahuachapan 362,681 365,128 5.8% 2,447
La Paz 355,944 357,629 5.6% 1,685
Usulutan 349,733 349,229 5.5% -504
Cuscatlan 264,291 266,027 4.2% 1,736
La Union 231,817 229,871 3.6% -1,946
Morazan 193,369 193,666 3.1% 297
Chalatenango 180,580 179,255 2.8% -1,325
San Vicente 174,033 174,223 2.8% 190
Cabañas 153,617 153,437 2.4% -180
Total 6,325,827 6,330,947 5,120

Visit our “Departments and Municipalities” page to get a breakdown of the population of all 262 Salvadoran municipalities.

Salvadoran population by age groups

Among the most important results obtained from the 2022 report is the representativeness of the young Salvadoran population between 15 and 29 years of age, with 25.8% of the total. This information is crucial as it allows the government to observe the country’s productive potential.

Another relevant age group is the population between 7 and 14 years of age, which by 2022 represented 13.1% of the total. This indicator is significant due to the demand for education services.

Population by age groups
Age group 2021 2022 Change
2021-2022
Change
Percentage
0-6 10.4 9.9 -0.5 -4.81%
7-14 12.9 13.1 0.2 1.55%
15-29 26.6 25.8 -0.8 -3.01%
30-59 36.1 37.1 1.0 2.77%
60 Plus 14.0 14.2 0.2 1.43%

SEE ALSO: El Salvador Healthcare System. Healthcare in El Salvador.

Urban population by age groups
Age group 2021 2022 Change
2021-2022
Change
Percentage
0-6 9.4 8.7 -0.7 -7.45%
7-14 12.1 12.1 0.0 0.00%
15-29 25.9 24.9 -1.0 -3.86%
30-59 37.7 38.9 1.2 3.18%
60 Plus 14.9 15.4 0.5 3.36%

SEE ALSO: The Struggles of Living in Rural Areas of El Salvador.

Rural population by age groups
Age group 2021 2022 Change
2021-2022
Change
Percentage
0-6 11.9 12.0 0.1 0.84%
7-14 14.3 14.6 0.3 2.10%
15-29 27.7 27.1 -0.6 -2.17%
30-59 33.5 34.0 0.5 1.49%
60 Plus 12.6 12.3 -0.3 -2.38%

Most populated Municipalities in El Salvador

The most populated municipalities in El Salvador in 2022 are San Salvador, Soyapango, Santa Ana, San Miguel, and Apopa. The following table has the ten most populated municipalities in the country.

Municipality Department 2022
Population
2023
Population
1 San Salvador San Salvador 335,982 335,070
2 Soyapango San Salvador 258,672 258,445
3 Santa Ana Santa Ana 251,095 250,318
4 San Miguel San Miguel 215,597 214,677
5 Apopa San Salvador 155,466 155,219
6 Mejicanos San Salvador 135,556 134,878
7 Santa Tecla La Libertad 127,294 127,269
8 Ahuachapan Ahuachapan 125,544 126,730
9 Delgado San Salvador 123,258 123,429
10 Colon La Libertad 120,088 120,819

Most of the most populated municipalities are in the San Salvador greater metropolitan area.

Least populated Municipalities in El Salvador

The municipalities less populated in El Salvador are San Antonio Los Ranchos, Azacualpa, Mercedes La Ceiba, San Francisco Lempa, and San Luís del Carmen. The following table has the ten least populated municipalities in the country.

Municipality Department 2022
Population
2023
Population
253 San Jose Cancasque Chalatenango 1524 1509
254 Cinquera Cabañas 1363 1364
255 San Jose Las Flores Chalatenango 1323 1318
256 Las Vueltas Chalatenango 1301 1294
257 San Isidro Labrador Chalatenango 1235 1233
258 San Luís del Carmen Chalatenango 1103 1098
259 Mercedes La Ceiba La Paz 1008 1012
260 San Francisco Lempa Chalatenango 1008 1006
261 Azacualpa Chalatenango 997 994
262 San Antonio Los Ranchos Chalatenango 988 979

Most of the municipalities with few inhabitants are in the department of Chalatenago, which is a mainly rural department near the Honduras border.