Share of population living in urban areas in Laos
Laos: Share of population living in urban areas was 30.6% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Share of population living in urban areas in Laos, 1950–2020
Source: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
Laos recorded 30.6% for share of population living in urban areas in 2020. That is the highest value across all 15 years on record.
The figure is up 12.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population living in urban areas in Laos peaked at 30.6% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 11.4%, in 1950.
Laos ranks 222nd of 236 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 15 years of available data.
Share of population living in urban areas in Laos, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 11.4% | — |
| 1955 | 12.6% | +10.0% |
| 1960 | 13.8% | +9.6% |
| 1965 | 15.1% | +9.3% |
| 1970 | 16.5% | +9.4% |
| 1975 | 18.1% | +9.6% |
| 1980 | 18.7% | +3.3% |
| 1985 | 20.2% | +8.4% |
| 1990 | 21.6% | +6.5% |
| 1995 | 23.1% | +7.0% |
| 2000 | 24.4% | +5.8% |
| 2005 | 26.4% | +8.1% |
| 2010 | 27.2% | +3.0% |
| 2015 | 28.4% | +4.2% |
| 2020 | 30.6% | +8.0% |
Laos compared with similar countries
- Laos's 30.6% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 71.3%, 43% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Laos's 30.6% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 70.5%, 43% of the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 12.0% | 11.4% | 12.6% | 2 |
| 1960s | 14.4% | 13.8% | 15.1% | 2 |
| 1970s | 17.3% | 16.5% | 18.1% | 2 |
| 1980s | 19.5% | 18.7% | 20.2% | 2 |
| 1990s | 22.3% | 21.6% | 23.1% | 2 |
| 2000s | 25.4% | 24.4% | 26.4% | 2 |
| 2010s | 27.8% | 27.2% | 28.4% | 2 |
| 2020s | 30.6% | 30.6% | 30.6% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Laos
More reference data data for Laos
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.6615 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.913 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1.88 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.3021 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 1.88 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 2.22 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 3.96 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 5.07 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 12.95 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.64 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population living in urban areas in Laos?
- Share of population living in urban areas in Laos was 30.6% in 2020, according to European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of population living in urban areas recorded in Laos?
- The highest recorded value was 30.6% in 2020.
- What is the lowest share of population living in urban areas recorded in Laos?
- The lowest recorded value was 11.4% in 1950.
- How does Laos rank for share of population living in urban areas?
- Laos ranks 222nd out of 236 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of population living in urban areas rising or falling in Laos?
- Over the last ten years it is up 12.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Laos data come from?
- The figures come from European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of population living in urban areas. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 15 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Estimated share of the population living in urban areas (the sum of cities and towns and suburbs). Urban areas are identified using satellite imagery and population data, applying the same definitions across countries.