What the data says about Lao PDR

Lao PDR is a lower-middle-income economy, a tier where a large share of economic activity often sits outside formally measured, monetized markets, so official statistics can understate real living standards more than the headline dollar figures suggest. With a comparatively small population, a single survey round or a change in methodology can shift Lao PDR's reported figures noticeably from one release to the next, independent of any real change on the ground. Where a field on this page reads "N/A," it usually means the relevant agency has not yet published a recent estimate for Lao PDR.

Lao PDR sits in East Asia & Pacific with a population of 7.8 million, placing it 102nd out of 217 countries by headcount. Its capital, Vientiane, anchors a Lower middle income economy with total GDP of $16.5 billion - ranked 140th globally, and GDP per capita of $2,124. This combination of demographic scale and economic output shapes everything from household purchasing power and domestic market depth to the country's weight in regional trade flows and international development programmes.

Life expectancy at birth in Lao PDR is 69.2 years, ranking 159th worldwide and offering a summary read on healthcare access, nutrition, sanitation, and long-run living standards. The World Bank's World Development Indicators, combined with the WHO Global Health Observatory and ILO ILOSTAT wage statistics, expose 40 data points across 7 thematic areas, from fertility and urbanisation to CO₂ emissions, school enrolment, and labour-force participation. Reading these indicators together, rather than in isolation, is what turns headline numbers into a grounded portrait of how people actually live.

Use the indicator tables below to track trajectories over time, jump to Lao PDR's placement on specific rankings such as GDP, population density, or life expectancy, and open the side-by-side Compare view to benchmark against peers inside East Asia & Pacific or across income groups. Because all figures come from official, CC BY 4.0-licensed datasets with clear vintages, you can cite them directly in research or journalism. Where a field reads "N/A", the upstream agency has not yet released that value for Lao PDR - we never fabricate estimates or carry forward stale values, so missing points stay visible rather than quietly filled in.