# Honduras and Nicaragua compared

Honduras and Nicaragua side by side: 41 shared sourced indicators across 9 domains, their chronicles record no events of each other.

Canonical: https://terralore.co/compare/hnd-vs-nic
Updated: 2026-08-10 (latest of the two dossiers' refreshes and the two chronicles' verification dates)

Two sourced records set beside each other — nothing on this page was written for the pair. Every figure is the same observation, with the same source, as on the two national dossiers; every event is the same record, with the same sources, as on its own chronicle. Figures are compared, never graded. A "—" is an absence in the source data, never a zero; each value shows its own observation year — vintages differ by indicator and nation.

## Formation

- Honduras: 1821 — Honduras declares independence from Spain with the Central American provinces
- Nicaragua: 1821 — Nicaragua declares independence from Spain with the Central American provinces

## Economy

| Metric | Honduras | Observed | Nicaragua | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GDP | $37 B | 2024 | $20 B | 2024 |
| GDP per capita | $3,426 | 2024 | $2,848 | 2024 |
| GDP growth | 3.6% | 2024 | 3.6% | 2024 |
| Inflation | 4.6% | 2024 | 4.6% | 2024 |
| Trade openness | 91.1% | 2024 | 98.5% | 2024 |

## Society

| Metric | Honduras | Observed | Nicaragua | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 11 m | 2024 | 6.9 m | 2024 |
| Life expectancy | 73.0 yrs | 2024 | 75.1 yrs | 2024 |
| Urban population | 58.8% | 2024 | 59.3% | 2024 |
| Fertility rate | 2.5 | 2024 | 2.2 | 2024 |

## Governance

| Metric | Honduras | Observed | Nicaragua | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Voice & accountability | 45.4 | 2024 | 26.8 | 2024 |
| Political stability | 56.2 | 2024 | 64.7 | 2024 |
| Government effectiveness | 39.3 | 2024 | 30.9 | 2024 |
| Regulatory quality | 45.0 | 2024 | 39.2 | 2024 |
| Rule of law | 36.7 | 2024 | 29.1 | 2024 |
| Control of corruption | 22.7 | 2024 | 18.9 | 2024 |

## Health

| Metric | Honduras | Observed | Nicaragua | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Health spending | 7.7% | 2023 | 8.3% | 2023 |
| Physicians | 0.49 | 2020 | 0.68 | 2018 |
| Under-5 mortality | 15.0 | 2024 | 11.2 | 2024 |
| Measles immunisation | 79.0% | 2024 | 85.0% | 2023 |
| Safe drinking water | 65.5% | 2024 | — | — |

## Education

| Metric | Honduras | Observed | Nicaragua | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adult literacy | 88.3% | 2024 | 87.3% | 2014 |
| Education spending | 4.5% | 2023 | 2.9% | 2023 |
| Primary enrolment | 79.0% | 2024 | 109.5% | 2023 |
| Secondary enrolment | 51.8% | 2024 | 70.2% | 2023 |
| Tertiary enrolment | 23.3% | 2024 | 30.4% | 2023 |

## Technology

| Metric | Honduras | Observed | Nicaragua | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| R&D spending | 0.1% | 2019 | 0.1% | 2015 |
| Researchers (per million) | 188 | 2019 | — | — |
| Internet users | 58.6% | 2024 | 61.4% | 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptions | 71 | 2024 | 106 | 2024 |
| High-tech exports | 3.9% | 2024 | 0.6% | 2024 |

## Geography

| Metric | Honduras | Observed | Nicaragua | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Land area | 111,890 km² | 2023 | 120,340 km² | 2023 |
| Forest area | 56.3% | 2023 | 25.8% | 2023 |
| Agricultural land | 32.0% | 2023 | 42.3% | 2023 |
| CO₂ per capita (t) | 1.1 | 2024 | 0.8 | 2024 |
| Renewable energy | 45.9% | 2021 | 50.4% | 2021 |

## Resources

| Metric | Honduras | Observed | Nicaragua | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Resource rents | 1.2% | 2021 | 3.8% | 2021 |
| Oil rents | 0.0% | 2021 | 0.0% | 2021 |
| Mineral rents | 0.4% | 2021 | 2.7% | 2021 |
| Forest rents | 0.8% | 2021 | 1.1% | 2021 |
| Electricity access | 95.6% | 2023 | 88.3% | 2023 |

## Military

| Metric | Honduras | Observed | Nicaragua | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Military burden | 1.6% | 2024 | 0.5% | 2024 |
| Defense spending | $581 M | 2024 | $105 M | 2024 |
| Armed forces | 23,000 | 2020 | 12,000 | 2020 |

Each metric is also ranked across all nations: https://terralore.co/rankings (markdown twins at /rankings/<metric>.md). Full dossiers: https://terralore.co/country/HND.md and https://terralore.co/country/NIC.md.

## Entangled histories (0 events)

Neither nation's sourced chronicle names the other — across both archives, no recorded event crosses between them. That is a fact about the two records as they stand, not a gap filled here.

## Sources

- World Development Indicators — World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://data.worldbank.org
- Worldwide Governance Indicators (via World Bank API) — Worldwide Governance Indicators / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/worldwide-governance-indicators
- Global Health Observatory (WHO, via World Bank WDI) — WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://www.who.int/data/gho
- Child mortality & immunisation estimates (UN IGME and WHO/UNICEF, via World Bank WDI) — UNICEF and WHO / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-08-10 · https://childmortality.org
- R&D statistics (UNESCO UIS, via World Bank WDI) — UNESCO Institute for Statistics / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://uis.unesco.org
- ICT indicators (ITU, via World Bank WDI) — ITU / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-15 · https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics
- Military Expenditure Database (via World Development Indicators) — SIPRI / World Bank · CC BY 4.0 · accessed 2026-06-14 · https://www.sipri.org/databases/milex

Chronicle references are cited inline above and resolve in full at https://terralore.co/country/HND/chronicle.md and https://terralore.co/country/NIC/chronicle.md.

Citation template: Terralore, "Honduras and Nicaragua compared", terralore.co/compare/hnd-vs-nic, retrieved <YYYY-MM-DD>.
