City North America
San Salvador
San Salvador is the capital of El Salvador, a small country in Central America. A big volcano rises near the city.
San Salvador is the capital of El Salvador, in Central America. It lies 682 meters up on a volcanic plateau, about 25 kilometers from the Pacific Ocean, with the San Salvador volcano to the northwest. At the 2024 census, 329,379 people lived in the city.
Founded by the Spanish in 1525 near Suchitoto and moved about 30 km southwest in 1528, San Salvador became a city in 1546 and the capital of independent El Salvador in 1841. Earthquakes and hurricanes have destroyed it several times. Census 2 May 2024: 329,379 (city); 1,575,489 (urban agglomeration).
Photo: randreu, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Discover San Salvador
San Salvador is the capital of El Salvador, a country in Central America. The city is on high, flat land near the Pacific Ocean.
A tall volcano stands close by.
San Salvador is the capital of El Salvador, which Universalis calls the smallest country in Central America. The city lies 682 meters above sea level, in the middle of a volcanic plateau, in a valley called the Valle de las Hamacas, the Valley of the Hammocks. The Pacific Ocean is about 25 kilometers away.
At the census of May 2024, 329,379 people lived in the city itself, and 1,575,489 in the whole built-up area around it.
Universalis: capital of El Salvador, the smallest state of Central America, at 682 m and 25 km from the Pacific Ocean, in the heart of a volcanic plateau, in the Valle de las Hamacas ('valley of hammocks'); the San Salvador volcano (1,893 m) rises 11 km northwest; in 2005 the city was estimated at 507,700 inhabitants and the agglomeration at 2,232,300.
City Population (from El Salvador's statistics office): San Salvador city 415,346 (census 1992), 316,090 (2007) and 329,379 (census 2 May 2024), rank 1; urban agglomeration 1,575,489 (2024); San Salvador department 1,563,371 (2024).
- Country
- El Salvador (capital)
- People in San Salvador (census, 2 May 2024)
- 329,379
- Urban agglomeration (census, 2024)
- 1,575,489
- Height above sea level
- 682 m, about 25 km from the Pacific Ocean
A green city below the mountains
Look down on the city! There are white and orange-roofed houses, tall buildings and lots of green trees.
This photo looks down over San Salvador on 12 June 2011. Treetops fill the front. Below them, houses with white walls and orange roofs spread between green trees, with tall apartment and office towers here and there.
Farther away, an oval stadium and more houses climb the green hills, partly in shadow.
Commons: photo by randreu, 12 June 2011, from Panoramio (CC BY 3.0; license reviewed when imported by the Panoramio upload bot in 2017); title 'El Salvador - San Salvador'. The recorded position is about 9.2 km west-northwest of the city's Wikidata point.
In the picture: forest canopy in the foreground; low-rise neighborhoods with orange and gray roofs among trees; white and brown high-rise towers, including three dark brown towers at right; an oval stadium and a tall dark tower in the distance; hillsides covered with houses and trees at the top.
- Photo
- a view over San Salvador, 12 June 2011
- Recorded position
- about 9.2 km west-northwest of the city's Wikidata point (Commons)
- Torre Futura
- a tower 99 m tall, dated to 2009 on Wikidata
A capital rebuilt many times
San Salvador was started in 1525. Earthquakes and storms knocked it down several times, and people built it again.
San Salvador was founded by the Spanish in 1525 near the village of Suchitoto, Universalis says. In 1528 it was moved about 30 kilometers to the southwest, and in 1546 it was made a city.
It was the capital of the Federation of Central America from 1834 to 1839, and in 1841 it became the capital of independent El Salvador. Earthquakes and hurricanes have destroyed the city several times, so no building from the colonial period is left.
Universalis: founded near the village of Suchitoto in 1525 by the Spanish, moved about thirty kilometers southwest in 1528, given city status in 1546; center of an important province in the captaincy general of Guatemala; capital of the Central American Federation from 1834 to 1839, then of independent El Salvador from 1841. Destroyed several times by earthquakes or hurricanes, the city no longer has any building from the colonial era; when it was rebuilt it was given administrative buildings, squares and green spaces.
- Founded
- 1525, near the village of Suchitoto, by the Spanish
- Moved
- about 30 km to the southwest in 1528; city status in 1546
- Capital of El Salvador
- since 1841
Roads to the Pacific ports
Big roads go from San Salvador down to the ports on the ocean. The city's airport is nearby.
San Salvador is El Salvador's main hub for getting around, Universalis says. Motorways link it to the ports of Acajutla, La Unión and La Libertad on the Pacific coast.
An international airport was built nearby in the late 1970s. The city spreads widely, and districts around it such as Mejicanos and Soyapango have grown quickly.
Universalis: the country's financial, commercial and industrial heart and its main communications hub, linked by motorway to the Pacific ports of Acajutla, La Unión (Cutuco) and La Libertad; an international airport was built nearby at the end of the 1970s; the city spreads widely, and outlying districts, notably Mejicanos, Villa Delgado and Soyapango, are growing fast.
City Population, census 2024: Soyapango 229,747 and Mejicanos 136,085, ranks 2 and 5 among the country's cities.
- Transport hub
- the country's main hub, linked by motorway to Pacific ports
- Pacific ports
- Acajutla, La Unión (Cutuco) and La Libertad
- International airport
- built near the city in the late 1970s
Warm all year, with a rainy season
San Salvador is warm every month. From May to October it rains a lot, and from December to March it is very dry.
The World Meteorological Organization's averages for 1981 to 2010 show warm days all year in San Salvador, with average highs between 29.5 °C and 32.7 °C. March and April are the hottest.
About 1,777 millimeters of rain fall in a year, almost all from May to October. September is the wettest month, with 338.7 millimeters, and February the driest, with just 1.6.
WMO World Weather Information Service, San Salvador (13.72° N, 89.20° W), 1981–2010: mean daily maximum 29.5 °C (September, October) to 32.7 °C (March, April); mean daily minimum 16.9 °C (January) to 20.4 °C (May). Rainfall sums to 1,776.7 mm; May to October bring 1,668.6 mm; September (338.7 mm) is the wettest month and February (1.6 mm) the driest. Rain days (at least 1 mm) sum to 108 a year.
- Average daily highs (WMO, San Salvador, 1981–2010)
- 29.5 °C (September and October) to 32.7 °C (March and April)
- Average daily lows (same normals)
- 16.9 °C (January) to 20.4 °C (May)
- Rain in a year (sum of the monthly normals)
- about 1,777 mm
Offices, workshops and a lake nearby
People in San Salvador make cloth, clothes and medicines. Not far away is a lake with a summer resort on its shores.
San Salvador is the financial, business and industrial heart of El Salvador, Universalis says. Its factories make textiles and clothes, work leather and wood, and make medicines.
The Central American University has been in the city since 1965. Less than 20 kilometers east lies Lake Ilopango, a crater lake, with a summer resort on its shores.
Universalis: industry rests on textiles, clothing, leather and wood processing and the pharmaceutical industry, among others; since 1965 the city has hosted the Central American University; a summer resort lies less than 20 km east on the shores of Lake Ilopango.
Wikidata: Lake Ilopango (Q14638420), a crater lake, 440 m, its point 15.63 km ESE of the city point; Central American University, San Salvador (Q1814702), 1965, 5.23 km WSW.
- Industries
- textiles and clothing, leather and wood, and medicines
- University
- the Central American University, in the city since 1965
- Lake Ilopango
- a lakeside summer resort less than 20 km east of the city
San Salvador on the map
Find Central America on the globe. El Salvador is a small country there, by the Pacific Ocean, and San Salvador is its capital.
San Salvador lies at about 13.7° north, about 25 kilometers from the Pacific Ocean.
Measured from the city's center point on Wikidata, the Estadio Cuscatlán is about 3.8 kilometers west-southwest, the Torre Futura about 5.5 kilometers west-northwest, the San Salvador volcano about 11.8 kilometers west-northwest and Lake Ilopango's center point about 15.6 kilometers east-southeast.
San Salvador lies at about 13.71° N and 89.21° W (Natural Earth point, 2.18 km NW of the Wikidata point). From the Wikidata point (Q3110): Estadio Cuscatlán (Q1369159), official opening 24 July 1976, 3.84 km WSW; Torre Futura (Q13415829), 99 m, 5.51 km WNW; San Salvador Volcano (Q2577068), 1,893 m, 11.81 km WNW; Lake Ilopango 15.63 km ESE. The WMO station point is 2.67 km NNW of the Wikidata point.
- Latitude
- about 13.7° north
- Longitude
- about 89.2° west
- San Salvador volcano
- 1,893 m, about 11 km northwest of the city
Amazing facts
-
San Salvador is in a place called the Valley of the Hammocks.
San Salvador lies in the Valle de las Hamacas, which means the Valley of the Hammocks, Universalis says.
Universalis: the city lies in the heart of a volcanic plateau, in the Valle de las Hamacas ('valley of hammocks').
-
A volcano almost 1,900 meters tall stands near San Salvador.
The San Salvador volcano, 1,893 meters high, rises about 11 kilometers northwest of the city, Universalis says.
Universalis: the San Salvador volcano (1,893 m) rises 11 km northwest of the city.
-
In February it almost never rains in San Salvador.
In the WMO averages, February brings only 1.6 millimeters of rain, while September brings 338.7.
WMO 1981–2010, San Salvador: February 1.6 mm and 0 rain days; September 338.7 mm and 19 rain days.
-
San Salvador was moved to a new place in 1528.
Three years after it was founded, San Salvador was moved about 30 kilometers to the southwest, Universalis says.
Universalis: founded near Suchitoto in 1525, the town was moved about thirty kilometers southwest in 1528.
Words to know
- capital
- the city where a country's government works
- plateau
- a large area of high, fairly flat land
- volcano
- a mountain where hot melted rock has come up from deep inside the Earth
- crater lake
- a lake that fills the hollow left by a volcano
- agglomeration
- a city together with the towns that have grown up joined to it
- census
- an official count of all the people in a place
Discovery challenge
-
San Salvador is the capital of which country?
San Salvador is the capital of which Central American country?
Since 1841, San Salvador has been the capital of which country?
- El Salvador
- Iceland
- Kenya
Show the answer
El Salvador
El Salvador!
El Salvador.
El Salvador.
-
What tall mountain stands near San Salvador?
What rises about 11 kilometers northwest of San Salvador?
What is the 1,893-meter feature 11 km northwest of the city, according to Universalis?
- A volcano
- A glacier
- A desert
Show the answer
A volcano
A volcano!
The San Salvador volcano.
The San Salvador volcano.
-
When was San Salvador founded?
In which year was San Salvador founded?
Universalis gives which year for the founding near Suchitoto?
- 1525
- 1925
- 1825
Show the answer
1525
1525!
1525.
1525.
-
What is the valley where San Salvador sits called?
San Salvador lies in the Valley of the what?
Universalis names San Salvador's valley the Valle de las Hamacas: the valley of what?
- Hammocks
- Horses
- Hats
Show the answer
Hammocks
Hammocks!
Hammocks.
Hammocks.
-
Which month is the rainiest in San Salvador?
In the WMO averages, which month gets the most rain?
WMO 1981–2010: which month has the highest rainfall, 338.7 mm?
- September
- February
- December
Show the answer
September
September!
September.
September (338.7 mm).
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For parents & teachers
What children will learn
- Locate San Salvador on a volcanic plateau near the Pacific coast.
- Explain why a city might be moved or rebuilt after its founding.
- Read a tropical climate table with a dry season and a rainy season.
- Tell the difference between a city's population and its whole built-up area.
Recommended ages: 3 to 17 · About 15 minutes
Talk about it
- How might people build differently in a place where earthquakes happen?
- Why might a capital city keep growing into the towns around it?
- What would you need to plan for in a city with six very dry months and six very wet months?
Try at home or in class
- Volcano map: draw San Salvador, its volcano and Lake Ilopango using the distances on this page.
- Rain chart: make a bar chart of San Salvador's monthly rain and color the dry and rainy seasons.
- Hammock knot: tie a simple hammock from string between two chairs for a toy.
Key vocabulary: capital, plateau, volcano, crater lake, agglomeration, census
Where these facts come from
- Wikidata , Wikimedia Foundation (CC0 1.0)
- Natural Earth vector data , Natural Earth (NACIS) (Public domain)
- San Salvador , Encyclopaedia Universalis
- El Salvador: Departments, Cities and Towns , City Population (Thomas Brinkhoff), from El Salvador's national statistics office
- San Salvador: climatological information , World Meteorological Organization, World Weather Information Service
- File:El Salvador - San Salvador - panoramio (1).jpg (randreu, 12 June 2011) , Wikimedia Commons
- Wikimedia Commons , Wikimedia Foundation (Per file (public domain, CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA); see each media record)
Checked, not yet human-reviewed. Last updated November 1, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.