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 85.5% less likely to be unemployed
In Sri Lanka, 4.8% of adults are unemployed as of 2019. In Laos, that number is 0.7% as of 2017.
make 37.6% less money
Sri Lanka has a GDP per capita of $12,500 as of 2020, while in Laos, the GDP per capita is $7,800 as of 2020.
be 4.5 times more likely to live below the poverty line
In Sri Lanka, 4.1% live below the poverty line as of 2016. 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 51.4% more children
In Sri Lanka, there are approximately 13.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022. In Laos, there are 20.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2022.
be 5.1 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Sri Lanka, approximately 36.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2017. In Laos, 185.0 women do as of 2017.
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 36.6% less on healthcare
Sri Lanka spends 4.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2019. In Laos, that number is 2.6% of GDP as of 2019.
spend 38.1% more on education
Sri Lanka spends 2.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2018. Laos spends 2.9% of total GDP on education as of 2014.
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.