El Salvador vs Nicaragua: Money sent or brought back by migrants as a share of GDP
El Salvador
27.5%
in 2025
Nicaragua
26.6%
in 2024
El Salvador rank
5th
Nicaragua rank
6th
Money sent or brought back by migrants as a share of GDP over time
- El Salvador
- Nicaragua
How they compare
El Salvador currently reports 27.5% against 26.6% in Nicaragua, a difference of 0.9%.
The two have swapped places 1 time across 36 shared years of data; in 1977 it was El Salvador ahead.
El Salvador ranks 5th and Nicaragua ranks 6th of 194 countries.
El Salvador has averaged higher in every one of the 5 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | El Salvador | Nicaragua | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2.3% | 0.2% | 2.1% | El Salvador |
| 1990s | 12.0% | 2.7% | 9.3% | El Salvador |
| 2000s | 18.5% | 8.6% | 9.9% | El Salvador |
| 2010s | 19.0% | 10.2% | 8.9% | El Salvador |
| 2020s | 24.7% | 20.6% | 4.1% | El Salvador |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher money sent or brought back by migrants as a share of gdp, El Salvador or Nicaragua?
- El Salvador, at 27.5% against 26.6% in Nicaragua as of 2025.
- What is the difference in money sent or brought back by migrants as a share of gdp between El Salvador and Nicaragua?
- 0.9%, with El Salvador ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for El Salvador and Nicaragua?
- 36 years are reported by both, from 1977 to 2024.
- How do El Salvador and Nicaragua rank globally for money sent or brought back by migrants as a share of gdp?
- El Salvador ranks 5th and Nicaragua ranks 6th of 194 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- World Bank staff estimates based on IMF and OECD data (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Money sent or brought back by migrants as a share of GDP. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Money sent or brought back by migrants refers to remittances a country has received in this year.