Is San Salvador safe?
El Salvador · North America · data updated 2026-09-04
San Salvador is a city in El Salvador, home to about 1.6M people, and one of 6,168 cities worldwide ranked on this site from published safety data. It currently ranks 5,821 of 6,168, with a safety score of 39.9 out of 100, placing it clearly below the global midpoint.
Emergency 911 (ambulance, fire, police)
- Very high homicide rate25.2 homicides per 100,000 per year (city-measured), about 9× the global city median.
Deadliest recorded locations nearby
- Ahuachapan8 deaths · 3 events
UCDP-recorded organized-violence deaths within 100 km of San Salvador, 2022-2024, at the locations the source itself names. Conflict deaths, not street crime.
How safe is San Salvador really?
The most direct evidence is measured in the city itself: San Salvador recorded 25 homicides per 100,000 residents in 2021 - roughly 9 times the global city median. El Salvador's income inequality is middling (Gini 39.8) - in this dataset inequality predicts city violence better than any other structural factor, so this neither raises nor lowers the picture much.
San Salvador also carries some conflict exposure: UCDP recorded 82 deaths from organized violence within 100 km across 63 events in 2022-2024 - a factor crime statistics alone would miss. The deadliest recorded locations in that radius were Ahuachapan (8 deaths).
What the travel advisories say
The US State Department currently rates El Salvador at level 1 of 4 - "Exercise normal precautions" (updated 2026-06-24). The UK Foreign Office publishes travel advice for El Salvador without any avoid-travel warning in force. Both advisories are country-level: no official source publishes verified neighborhood-level crime guidance for individual cities, which is why this page reports named areas only where an official source names them.
What to watch out for in El Salvador
Terrorism in El Salvador · Political situation · State of exception (emergency) · Robberies and violent assaults · Protecting yourself and your belongings · Buses and taxis · Criminal kidnapping · Scams · Personal ID · Money · Crowded events · Illegal drugs and prison sentences · LGBT+ travellers · Landmines and unexploded weapons · +10 more
Topic headings from the official UK FCDO travel advice for El Salvador — country-level, not specific to San Salvador. Read what each one says →
The numbers
- Homicide rate
- 25 /100kcity-measured, 2021 · ~9× the global city median
- Conflict deaths
- 82within 100 km, 2022-2024 (UCDP)
- Income inequality
- Gini 39.8country, 2023
- Human development
- HDI 0.678country, 2023
- Income
- $13,140/yrGNI per capita PPP · context only, not scored
- Population
- 1.6Murban centre · 6,072/km²
- Nearest airport
- 33 kmEl Salvador International Airport Saint Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez (SAL)
Straight-line distance from the city centre, not drive time. Scheduled-service airports only (OurAirports).
Country context for travelers
- Road deaths
- 20.9 /100kWHO, 2019 · often the biggest real travel risk
- Political stability
- 66/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · higher = more stable
- Rule of law
- 45/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · police and courts reliability
- Corruption perceptions
- 32/100Transparency International, 2025 · higher = cleaner
- Natural-hazard risk
- 4.4/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Women, Peace & Security
- 0.69Georgetown WPS Index, 2025 · 0-1, higher = better
- Air quality
- 29.6 µg/m³PM2.5 annual mean, 2023 · WHO guideline is 5
- Safely managed drinking water
- no dataof the population · WHO/UNICEF JMP
- Healthcare capacity
- 1.6 doctors /1k1.2 hospital beds per 1,000
- Malaria
- 0 /1k at riskWHO, 2024 · listed for endemic countries only
Natural hazards in El Salvador
- Earthquake
- 9.2/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Tsunami
- 7.6/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Drought
- 3.6/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Flood
- 3.5/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Cyclone
- 1.3/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Hazard types scoring under 1 out of 10 are not listed. These describe El Salvador as a whole, not San Salvador specifically.
Same-sex sexual activity is legal in El Salvador (as of 2025).
All country-level figures shared by every city in El Salvador; none of them affect the safety score.
How the score works
One fixed, calibrated mix for every city: 40% homicide · 25% peace · 25% equality · 10% HDI. Homicide and conflict deaths are measured outcomes; income inequality carries the structural share because it predicts real city violence far better than national income (which is shown above but scored at zero). Each factor maps to 0-100 against fixed anchors, missing data drops out and is never estimated, and cities with data behind less than half the weighting get “no data” instead of a score. For San Salvador that gives 39.9/100. Full methodology, anchors and sources →
San Salvador compared with Guatemala City
| Measure | San Salvador | Guatemala City | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safety score | 39.9 | 34.0 | +5.9 — better for San Salvador |
| Homicide ratecity-measured where published, otherwise the national rate | 25 /100k | 46 /100k | −21 /100k — better for San Salvador |
| Conflict deaths within 100 km | 82 | 46 | +36 — better for Guatemala City |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 39.8 | 45.2 | −5.4 — better for San Salvador |
| Human development (HDI) | 0.678 | 0.662 | +0.016 — better for San Salvador |
| Road deaths | 20.9 /100k | 22.9 /100k | −2.0 /100k — better for San Salvador |
| Rule of law | 45/100 | 40/100 | +5/100 — better for San Salvador |
| Corruption perceptions | 32/100 | 26/100 | +6/100 — better for San Salvador |
| Air quality (PM2.5) | 29.6 µg/m³ | 29.7 µg/m³ | −0.1 µg/m³ — better for San Salvador |
| Natural-hazard risk | 4.4/10 | 5.9/10 | −1.5/10 — better for San Salvador |
Differences are plain arithmetic between the two stored figures — nothing is modelled. Country-level rows describe the two countries, not the cities themselves. Full report for Guatemala City →
Nearby cities
- Lourdes 40.0
- Santa Ana 45.8
- Sonsonate 54.2
- San Miguel 58.0
- Guatemala City, Guatemala 34.0
- Escuintla, Guatemala 38.9
- Antigua Guatemala, Guatemala 34.0
- Comayagua, Honduras 37.7
See San Salvador on the interactive map → · Safest cities in North America → · Full travel briefings →