Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Laos instead of Sri Lanka, you would:
Health
live 9.3 years less
In Sri Lanka, the average life expectancy is 78 years (75 years for men, 82 years for women) as of 2020. In Laos, that number is 68 years (66 years for men, 70 years for women) as of 2022.
Economy
be 81.4% less likely to be unemployed
In Sri Lanka, 6.4% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Laos, that number is 1.2% as of 2023.
make 35.4% less money
Sri Lanka has a GDP per capita of $13,000 as of 2023, while in Laos, the GDP per capita is $8,400 as of 2023.
be 28.0% more likely to live below the poverty line
In Sri Lanka, 14.3% live below the poverty line as of 2019. In Laos, however, that number is 18.3% as of 2018.
pay a 60.0% higher top tax rate
Sri Lanka has a top tax rate of 15.0% as of 2016. In Laos, the top tax rate is 24.0% as of 2016.
Life
have 36.6% more children
In Sri Lanka, there are approximately 14.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Laos, there are 19.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 4.3 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Sri Lanka, approximately 29.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Laos, 126.0 women do as of 2020.
be 4.6 times more likely to die during infancy
In Sri Lanka, approximately 8.2 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.
Expenditures
spend 34.1% less on healthcare
Sri Lanka spends 4.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Laos, that number is 2.7% of GDP as of 2020.
spend 21.1% more on education
Sri Lanka spends 1.9% 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, Ministry of Finance, Sri Lanka Inland Revenue Department.
Laos: At a glance
How big is Laos compared to Sri Lanka? See an in-depth size comparison.