Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Laos instead of Burma, you would:
Health
live 1.8 years less
In Burma, the average life expectancy is 70 years (68 years for men, 72 years for women) as of 2022. In Laos, that number is 68 years (66 years for men, 70 years for women) as of 2022.
Economy
make 58.5% more money
Burma has a GDP per capita of $5,300 as of 2023, while in Laos, the GDP per capita is $8,400 as of 2023.
be 58.5% less likely to be unemployed
In Burma, 2.8% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Laos, that number is 1.2% as of 2023.
be 26.2% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Burma, 24.8% live below the poverty line as of 2017. In Laos, however, that number is 18.3% as of 2018.
Life
be 29.6% less likely to die during childbirth
In Burma, approximately 179.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Laos, 126.0 women do as of 2020.
have 26.1% more children
In Burma, there are approximately 15.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Laos, there are 19.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 14.7% more likely to die during infancy
In Burma, approximately 32.9 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Laos, on the other hand, 37.8 children do as of 2022.
Basic Needs
be 35.7% more likely to have access to electricity
In Burma, approximately 74% of people have electricity access (94% in urban areas, and 63% in rural areas) as of 2022. In Laos, that number is 100% of people on average (98% in urban areas, and 93% in rural areas) as of 2022.
be 40.9% more likely to have internet access
In Burma, approximately 44.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Laos, about 62.0% do as of 2021.
Expenditures
spend 27.0% less on healthcare
Burma spends 3.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Laos, that number is 2.7% of GDP as of 2020.
spend 15.0% more on education
Burma spends 2.0% of its total GDP on education as of 2019. Laos spends 2.3% of total GDP on education as of 2020.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.
Laos: At a glance
How big is Laos compared to Burma? See an in-depth size comparison.