Military personnel in Laos

Laos: Military personnel was 29,000 in 2022. ▼ Falling

Latest (2022)
29,000
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
81st
of 194 countries
All-time high
93,000
in 1966
All-time low
25,000
in 1953
Years of data
70
1953–2022

Military personnel in Laos, 1953–2022

20.0k40.0k60.0k80.0k100.0k195319872022

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for military personnel in Laos is 29,000, measured in 2022.

Compared with earlier readings it is unchanged over ten years.

Over the whole period, military personnel in Laos peaked at 93,000 in 1966 and was at its lowest, 25,000, in 1953.

That places Laos 81st out of 194 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 70 years of available data.

Military personnel in Laos, year by year

Annual values for Military personnel in Laos, 1953 to 2022.
Year Value Change
1953 25,000 —
1954 25,000 +0.0%
1955 25,000 +0.0%
1956 25,000 +0.0%
1957 25,000 +0.0%
1958 25,000 +0.0%
1959 29,000 +16.0%
1960 29,000 +0.0%
1961 55,000 +89.7%
1962 60,000 +9.1%
1963 83,000 +38.3%
1964 91,000 +9.6%
1965 86,000 -5.5%
1966 93,000 +8.1%
1967 62,000 -33.3%
1968 62,000 +0.0%
1969 59,000 -4.8%
1970 62,000 +5.1%
1971 72,000 +16.1%
1972 79,000 +9.7%
1973 71,000 -10.1%
1974 60,000 -15.5%
1975 46,000 -23.3%
1976 46,000 +0.0%
1977 45,000 -2.2%
1978 47,000 +4.4%
1979 46,000 -2.1%
1980 55,000 +19.6%
1981 46,000 -16.4%
1982 46,000 +0.0%
1983 49,000 +6.5%
1984 54,000 +10.2%
1985 54,000 +0.0%
1986 56,000 +3.7%
1987 56,000 +0.0%
1988 56,000 +0.0%
1989 56,000 +0.0%
1990 55,000 -1.8%
1991 53,000 -3.6%
1992 37,000 -30.2%
1993 37,000 +0.0%
1994 45,000 +21.6%
1995 50,000 +11.1%
1996 50,000 +0.0%
1997 50,000 +0.0%
1998 50,000 +0.0%
1999 50,000 +0.0%
2000 29,000 -42.0%
2001 29,000 +0.0%
2002 29,000 +0.0%
2003 29,000 +0.0%
2004 29,000 +0.0%
2005 29,000 +0.0%
2006 29,000 +0.0%
2007 29,000 +0.0%
2008 29,000 +0.0%
2009 29,000 +0.0%
2010 29,000 +0.0%
2011 29,000 +0.0%
2012 29,000 +0.0%
2013 29,000 +0.0%
2014 29,000 +0.0%
2015 29,000 +0.0%
2016 29,000 +0.0%
2017 29,000 +0.0%
2018 29,000 +0.0%
2019 29,000 +0.0%
2020 29,000 +0.0%
2021 29,000 +0.0%
2022 29,000 +0.0%

Laos compared with similar countries

  • Laos's 29,000 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 15,500, 1.9× the median. (46 countries reporting)
  • Laos's 29,000 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 9,500, 3.1× the median. (30 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 25,571 25,000 29,000 7
1960s 68,000 29,000 93,000 10
1970s 57,400 45,000 79,000 10
1980s 52,800 46,000 56,000 10
1990s 47,700 37,000 55,000 10
2000s 29,000 29,000 29,000 10
2010s 29,000 29,000 29,000 10
2020s 29,000 29,000 29,000 3

Countries ranked near Laos

  1. 79 Hungary 32,000 compare
  2. 80 Burundi 30,000 compare
  3. 81 Zimbabwe 29,000 compare
  4. 83 Serbia 28,000 compare
  5. 84 Cote d'Ivoire 27,000 compare
  6. 84 Czechia 27,000 compare
  7. 84 Portugal 27,000 compare
  8. 84 Tanzania 27,000 compare

See the full ranking of 194 places →

More reference data data for Laos

All data for Laos →

Frequently asked questions

What is military personnel in Laos?
Military personnel in Laos was 29,000 in 2022, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest military personnel recorded in Laos?
The highest recorded value was 93,000 in 1966.
What is the lowest military personnel recorded in Laos?
The lowest recorded value was 25,000 in 1953.
How does Laos rank for military personnel?
Laos ranks 81st out of 194 countries with data for 2022.
Is military personnel rising or falling in Laos?
Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Laos data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Military personnel. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Military personnel in Laos. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 13 November 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/military-personnel/lao-pdr/

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About this data

Indicator
Military personnel
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
194 places, 15,765 data points, 1816–2022
Last refreshed