Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Turkmenistan instead of Laos, you would:
Health
live 3.7 years longer
In Laos, the average life expectancy is 68 years (66 years for men, 70 years for women) as of 2022. In Turkmenistan, that number is 72 years (69 years for men, 75 years for women) as of 2022.
be 3.5 times more likely to be obese
In Laos, 5.3% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Turkmenistan, that number is 18.6% of people as of 2016.
Economy
make 98.7% more money
Laos has a GDP per capita of $7,800 as of 2020, while in Turkmenistan, the GDP per capita is $15,500 as of 2019.
be 98.9% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Laos, 18.3% live below the poverty line as of 2018. In Turkmenistan, however, that number is 0.2% as of 2012.
be 15.7 times more likely to be unemployed
In Laos, 0.7% of adults are unemployed as of 2017. In Turkmenistan, that number is 11.0% as of 2014.
Life
be 96.2% less likely to die during childbirth
In Laos, approximately 185.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In Turkmenistan, 7.0 women do as of 2017.
be 17.7% more likely to be literate
In Laos, the literacy rate is 84.7% as of 2015. In Turkmenistan, it is 99.7% as of 2015.
have 16.2% fewer children
In Laos, there are approximately 20.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022. In Turkmenistan, there are 17.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022.
Basic Needs
be 12.6% more likely to have access to improved drinking water
In Laos, approximately 89% of people have improved drinking water access (97% in urban areas, and 84% in rural areas) as of 2020. In Turkmenistan, that number is 100% of people on average (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2020.
be 25.6% less likely to have internet access
In Laos, approximately 34.0% of the population has internet access as of 2020. In Turkmenistan, about 25.3% do as of 2022.
Expenditures
spend 2.5 times more on healthcare
Laos spends 2.6% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2019. In Turkmenistan, that number is 6.6% of GDP as of 2019.
The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.
Turkmenistan: At a glance
How big is Turkmenistan compared to Laos? See an in-depth size comparison.