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Freedom of Expression Index in El Salvador

El Salvador: Freedom of Expression Index was 0.356 in 2025. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2025)
0.356
Change on year
down 9.2%
World rank
138th
of 176 countries
All-time high
0.867
in 2017
All-time low
0.108
in 1977
Years of data
188
1838–2025

Freedom of Expression Index in El Salvador, 1838–2025

0.20.40.60.8183819312025

Source: V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

El Salvador recorded 0.356 for freedom of expression index in 2025.

That represents a change of down 9.2% on the previous year and down 57.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, freedom of expression index in El Salvador peaked at 0.867 in 2017 and was at its lowest, 0.108, in 1977.

That places El Salvador 138th out of 176 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Freedom of Expression Index in El Salvador, year by year

Year Value Change
1838 0.19 —
1839 0.19 +0.0%
1840 0.19 +0.0%
1841 0.19 +0.0%
1842 0.19 +0.0%
1843 0.19 +0.0%
1844 0.19 +0.0%
1845 0.19 +0.0%
1846 0.19 +0.0%
1847 0.19 +0.0%
1848 0.19 +0.0%
1849 0.19 +0.0%
1850 0.19 +0.0%
1851 0.19 +0.0%
1852 0.19 +0.0%
1853 0.19 +0.0%
1854 0.19 +0.0%
1855 0.19 +0.0%
1856 0.19 +0.0%
1857 0.19 +0.0%
1858 0.19 +0.0%
1859 0.19 +0.0%
1860 0.19 +0.0%
1861 0.19 +0.0%
1862 0.19 +0.0%
1863 0.19 +0.0%
1864 0.19 +0.0%
1865 0.19 +0.0%
1866 0.19 +0.0%
1867 0.19 +0.0%
1868 0.19 +0.0%
1869 0.19 +0.0%
1870 0.19 +0.0%
1871 0.19 +0.0%
1872 0.19 +0.0%
1873 0.19 +0.0%
1874 0.19 +0.0%
1875 0.19 +0.0%
1876 0.19 +0.0%
1877 0.19 +0.0%
1878 0.19 +0.0%
1879 0.19 +0.0%
1880 0.19 +0.0%
1881 0.19 +0.0%
1882 0.19 +0.0%
1883 0.19 +0.0%
1884 0.19 +0.0%
1885 0.209 +10.0%
1886 0.247 +18.2%
1887 0.288 +16.6%
1888 0.288 +0.0%
1889 0.288 +0.0%
1890 0.261 -9.4%
1891 0.261 +0.0%
1892 0.261 +0.0%
1893 0.261 +0.0%
1894 0.261 +0.0%
1895 0.261 +0.0%
1896 0.261 +0.0%
1897 0.261 +0.0%
1898 0.261 +0.0%
1899 0.261 +0.0%
1900 0.249 -4.6%
1901 0.249 +0.0%
1902 0.249 +0.0%
1903 0.249 +0.0%
1904 0.249 +0.0%
1905 0.249 +0.0%
1906 0.249 +0.0%
1907 0.249 +0.0%
1908 0.249 +0.0%
1909 0.249 +0.0%
1910 0.249 +0.0%
1911 0.249 +0.0%
1912 0.249 +0.0%
1913 0.249 +0.0%
1914 0.247 -0.8%
1915 0.247 +0.0%
1916 0.247 +0.0%
1917 0.247 +0.0%
1918 0.247 +0.0%
1919 0.247 +0.0%
1920 0.247 +0.0%
1921 0.247 +0.0%
1922 0.247 +0.0%
1923 0.247 +0.0%
1924 0.247 +0.0%
1925 0.247 +0.0%
1926 0.247 +0.0%
1927 0.261 +5.7%
1928 0.261 +0.0%
1929 0.261 +0.0%
1930 0.261 +0.0%
1931 0.229 -12.3%
1932 0.111 -51.5%
1933 0.109 -1.8%
1934 0.109 +0.0%
1935 0.109 +0.0%
1936 0.109 +0.0%
1937 0.109 +0.0%
1938 0.109 +0.0%
1939 0.109 +0.0%
1940 0.119 +9.2%
1941 0.119 +0.0%
1942 0.119 +0.0%
1943 0.119 +0.0%
1944 0.133 +11.8%
1945 0.189 +42.1%
1946 0.189 +0.0%
1947 0.189 +0.0%
1948 0.189 +0.0%
1949 0.189 +0.0%
1950 0.191 +1.1%
1951 0.191 +0.0%
1952 0.191 +0.0%
1953 0.191 +0.0%
1954 0.191 +0.0%
1955 0.153 -19.9%
1956 0.153 +0.0%
1957 0.153 +0.0%
1958 0.153 +0.0%
1959 0.153 +0.0%
1960 0.155 +1.3%
1961 0.155 +0.0%
1962 0.166 +7.1%
1963 0.162 -2.4%
1964 0.162 +0.0%
1965 0.162 +0.0%
1966 0.165 +1.9%
1967 0.154 -6.7%
1968 0.154 +0.0%
1969 0.154 +0.0%
1970 0.147 -4.5%
1971 0.147 +0.0%
1972 0.143 -2.7%
1973 0.113 -21.0%
1974 0.113 +0.0%
1975 0.113 +0.0%
1976 0.113 +0.0%
1977 0.108 -4.4%
1978 0.108 +0.0%
1979 0.11 +1.9%
1980 0.124 +12.7%
1981 0.126 +1.6%
1982 0.126 +0.0%
1983 0.157 +24.6%
1984 0.167 +6.4%
1985 0.18 +7.8%
1986 0.18 +0.0%
1987 0.18 +0.0%
1988 0.18 +0.0%
1989 0.206 +14.4%
1990 0.237 +15.0%
1991 0.237 +0.0%
1992 0.402 +69.6%
1993 0.68 +69.2%
1994 0.71 +4.4%
1995 0.71 +0.0%
1996 0.71 +0.0%
1997 0.714 +0.6%
1998 0.714 +0.0%
1999 0.724 +1.4%
2000 0.769 +6.2%
2001 0.769 +0.0%
2002 0.769 +0.0%
2003 0.767 -0.3%
2004 0.77 +0.4%
2005 0.774 +0.5%
2006 0.776 +0.3%
2007 0.776 +0.0%
2008 0.773 -0.4%
2009 0.827 +7.0%
2010 0.856 +3.5%
2011 0.856 +0.0%
2012 0.845 -1.3%
2013 0.841 -0.5%
2014 0.841 +0.0%
2015 0.841 +0.0%
2016 0.848 +0.8%
2017 0.867 +2.2%
2018 0.793 -8.5%
2019 0.72 -9.2%
2020 0.581 -19.3%
2021 0.424 -27.0%
2022 0.404 -4.7%
2023 0.419 +3.7%
2024 0.392 -6.4%
2025 0.356 -9.2%

El Salvador compared with similar countries

  • El Salvador's 0.356 is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.6745, 53% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
  • El Salvador's 0.356 is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 0.81, 44% of the median. (25 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1830s 0.19 0.19 0.19 2
1840s 0.19 0.19 0.19 10
1850s 0.19 0.19 0.19 10
1860s 0.19 0.19 0.19 10
1870s 0.19 0.19 0.19 10
1880s 0.227 0.19 0.288 10
1890s 0.261 0.261 0.261 10
1900s 0.249 0.249 0.249 10
1910s 0.2478 0.247 0.249 10
1920s 0.2512 0.247 0.261 10
1930s 0.1364 0.109 0.261 10
1940s 0.1554 0.119 0.189 10
1950s 0.172 0.153 0.191 10
1960s 0.1589 0.154 0.166 10
1970s 0.1215 0.108 0.147 10
1980s 0.1626 0.124 0.206 10
1990s 0.5838 0.237 0.724 10
2000s 0.777 0.767 0.827 10
2010s 0.8308 0.72 0.867 10
2020s 0.4293 0.356 0.581 6

Countries ranked near El Salvador

  1. 135 Congo 0.373 compare
  2. 136 Algeria 0.367 compare
  3. 137 Syria 0.358 compare
  4. 139 Djibouti 0.336 compare
  5. 140 Kazakhstan 0.329 compare
  6. 141 Sudan 0.289 compare

See the full ranking of 176 places →

More social development data for El Salvador

All data for El Salvador →

Frequently asked questions

What is freedom of expression index in El Salvador?
Freedom of expression index in El Salvador was 0.356 in 2025, according to V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest freedom of expression index recorded in El Salvador?
The highest recorded value was 0.867 in 2017.
What is the lowest freedom of expression index recorded in El Salvador?
The lowest recorded value was 0.108 in 1977.
How does El Salvador rank for freedom of expression index?
El Salvador ranks 138th out of 176 countries with data for 2025.
Is freedom of expression index rising or falling in El Salvador?
Over the last ten years it is down 57.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this El Salvador data come from?
The figures come from V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Freedom of Expression Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Relationships involving this indicator

Comparisons with other indicators across countries. Each was re-measured with population and national income held constant, so a relationship that only reflected country size is not listed here.

All correlations →

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Freedom of Expression Index in El Salvador. Statizoid, drawing on V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 08 November 2026, from https://social-development.statizoid.com/stat/freedom-of-expression-index/el-salvador/

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About this data

Indicator
Freedom of Expression Index
Source
V-Dem (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
176 places, 30,035 data points, 1789–2025
Last refreshed

Central estimate of the extent to which people can discuss political matters at home and in the public sphere, the press, and media are free and can present different political perspectives, and the freedom of academic and cultural expression.