El Salvador

Official name: Republic of El Salvador
Also known as: República de El Salvador (Spanish)

Flag of El Salvador
Capital of El Salvador: San Salvador
Area of El Salvador: 21,041 km² (8,124 mi²) (151th)
Population of El Salvador: 6,338,193 (112th) - (2024 est.)
Location: Central America
Languages of El Salvador: Spanish (official), Nawat (among some indigenous)
Religions of El Salvador: Roman Catholic 36.82Protestant 47.02% (Evangelical - unspecified 38.2%, Evangelical - Methodist 1.3%, Evangelical - Baptist 0.1%), No religion 12.98%other 1.55% (2025 est.)
Ethnic groups of El Salvador: Mestizo (mixed White and Indigenous) 86.3%, White 12.7%, Indigenous 0.2% (includes Lenca, Kakawira, Nahua-Pipil), Black 0.1%, other 0.6% (2007 est.)
Currency: US Dollar (USD; since 2001), Bitcoin (BTC; since September 2021), Salvadoran colón (no longer in circulation, still legal)
Time zone: UTC6 (CST)
Calling code: (+503)
Organizations: United Nations

Border countries (2): Guatemala 199 km, Honduras 391 km.
Coastline: North Pacific Ocean 307 km (191 mi)
Maritime boundaries: Gulf of Fonseca

Administrative divisions of El Salvador
El Salvador Map

14 departments (departamentos, singular - departamento):
Ahuachapan, Cabanas, Chalatenango, Cuscatlan, La Libertad, La Paz, La Union, Morazan, San Miguel, San Salvador, San Vicente, Santa Ana, Sonsonate, Usulutan.

Cities, towns, and villages

  • San Salvador is the capital and largest city of El Salvador, approximately in the center of the country in a valley near the base of the San Salvador volcano. The city has a long history, with origins dating back to the Spanish conquest of the Pipil tribes.
  • La Libertad is El Salvador's surfing beach
  • San Francisco Gotera is a small city in Eastern El Salvador
  • San Miguel, San Miguel department is the third largest city in El Salvador and center of agriculture and production. It is less cosmopolitan than the capital San Salvador in the West but the surrounding areas of San Miguel are very beautiful with many beaches around the city.
  • Santa Ana, Santa Ana is the second largest city of El Salvador and a very important one in terms of agriculture and coffee production (coffee plantations, called fincas, cover much of the surrounding land outside of town and up the hills).
  • Santa Tecla claims to be the country's second largest city, though it's really just a rather ordinary suburb of San Salvador
  • Suchitoto is an important tourist destination partly due to its well-conserved colonial architecture and cobblestone roads that provide a sense of Spanish colonial living.

Natural resources: Hydropower, geothermal power, petroleum, arable land.