Laos — Country Profile
Population, GDP, natural resources, leaders and history of Laos: the Magna Factbook country file, with its Magna Power score (--/100, ranked #-- of 195).
Last updated: October 2026
Laos is in Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam. It covers 236,800 sq km. 22 October 1953 (Franco-Lao Treaty recognizes full independence). Terrain: mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus. Climate: tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April).
| Capital | Vientiane (Viangchan) |
|---|---|
| Population | 7,953,556 (2024 est.) |
| GDP (PPP) | $66.905 billion (2024 est.) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $8,600 (2024 est.) |
| Real GDP growth | 4.3% (2024 est.) |
| Inflation | 23.1% (2024 est.) |
| Unemployment | 1.3% (2024 est.) |
| Public debt | 58.4% of GDP (2016 est.) |
| Exports | $9.698 billion (2023 est.) |
| Imports | $8.596 billion (2023 est.) |
| Life expectancy | 69 years (2024 est.) |
| Median age | 25.8 years (2025 est.) |
| Urbanization | 38.2% of total population (2023) |
| Government | communist party-led state |
| Independence | 19 July 1949 (from France); 22 October 1953 (Franco-Lao Treaty recognizes full independence) |
| Languages | Lao (official), French, English, various ethnic languages |
Laos’s GDP is $66.905 billion (2024 est.) in purchasing-power-parity terms. At official exchange rates it stands at $16.503 billion (2024 est.). Real GDP grew 4.3% (2024 est.). See where Laos ranks among all 195 countries by GDP.
POWER --/100 — The Magna Power score is our 0–100 composite of structural national power — nine components, 135 indicators. It is the Bureau's own assessment, not a mirror of World Bank or CIA figures.
Momentum 0 — Quarterly momentum: the Bureau's read on the country's trajectory over the last quarter, from −10 (deteriorating fast) to +10 (accelerating).
A quiet quarter: no major shocks, no breakthroughs. The country's trajectory is set by structural forces larger than any single season.
The honest reading is steadiness — neither crisis nor windfall — with the long currents of demography, trade and institutions deciding more than any three months.
- What our model rewards: unemployment near 1.3% — work for whoever wants it; 77% of its electricity from low-carbon sources
- What drags it down: inflation running at 23.1% — eating paychecks; life expectancy of only 69 years
Timber, Hydropower, Gypsum, Tin, Gold.
Energy is the physical base of economic power — what a country can generate, move and burn decides what it can build, sell and defend.
| Electricity access | 100% (2022 est.) |
|---|---|
| Installed capacity mix (CIA) | fossil fuels: 23.3% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); solar: 0.2% of total installed capacity (2023 est.); hydroelectricity: 76.5% of total installed capacity (2023 est.) |
| Energy consumption per capita (CIA) | 34.463 million Btu/person (2023 est.) |
| Primary energy consumption (OWID) | 77.4 TWh (2023) |
| Electricity generation (OWID) | 52.3 TWh (2023) |
| Energy per capita (OWID) | 10,100 kWh per person (2023) |
| Electricity generation mix (OWID) | Hydro 76.5%, Coal 23.3%, Solar 0.2% (2023) |
| Low-carbon share of electricity (OWID) | 76.7% (2023) |
| Carbon intensity of electricity (OWID) | 232.1 gCO2/kWh (2023) |
Sources: CIA World Factbook, Energy section; Our World in Data (IEA/Ember), 2023.
Trade shows what the world buys from a country and what the country must buy from the world — the balance between the two is a direct measure of economic leverage.
| Exports | $9.698 billion (2023 est.) |
|---|---|
| Imports | $8.596 billion (2023 est.) |
| Trade balance (calculated) | Surplus of $1.1 billion (2023), calculated from the CIA export and import figures above. |
| Key industries | mining (copper, tin, gold, gypsum); timber, electric power, agricultural processing, rubber, construction, garments, cement, tourism |
Source: CIA World Factbook, Economy section.
Thongloun Sisoulith — President. President THONGLOUN Sisoulith (since 22 March 2021)
Laos maintains 40 embassies abroad, hosts 28 foreign diplomatic missions, holds permanent missions to ASEAN Jakarta, UN New York, UN Geneva. The breadth of a diplomatic network is a direct measure of diplomatic power — it shows how far a country’s influence, alliances and interests reach.
| Embassies abroad | 40 |
|---|---|
| Foreign missions hosted | 28 |
| Multilateral missions | ASEAN Jakarta, UN New York, UN Geneva |
Source: Lowy Institute Global Diplomacy Index 2024 (released 2024-02-25), https://globaldiplomacyindex.lowyinstitute.org/; Wikipedia 'List of diplomatic missions of Laos', https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_diplomatic_missions_of_Laos; '... in Laos', https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_diplomatic_missions_in_Laos
Transport networks are economic power made physical — ports, runways, railways and pipelines decide what a country can move, sell and defend.
| Sea access | Landlocked — no seacoast; exports move through transit corridors across neighbouring countries. |
|---|---|
| Airports (total) | 20 (registration prefix RDPL) |
| Railways | 422 km |
| Pipelines | 540 km refined products (2013) |
Major airports
Luang Phabang International Airport (LPQ) — Luang Phabang; Pakse International Airport (PKZ) — Pakse; Wattay International Airport (VTE) — Vientiane; Bokeo International Airport (BOR) — Ton Phueng.
Sources: OurAirports public-domain extract (2026-10-02); per-entry Wikipedia links included; CIA World Factbook via cia_factbook snapshot (2026-09-28); theodora.com CIA mirror (CIA World Factbook Transportation section), scraped 2026-10-02
| Political system | one-party communist state |
|---|---|
| Next election | No election currently scheduled. |
POWER --/100 Ranked #-- of 195 countries in the Magna Country Rankings. Full ranking breakdown for Laos.
This profile covers the population, economy, natural resources, leaders, and history of Laos — with the Bureau’s live national-power score of --/100, ranking #-- of 195 countries.
What is Laos's power score?
Laos has a Magna Power score of --/100. The score measures structural power — the proven capacity to shape events — across nine components.