Guinea vs Laos
Guinea is 4% larger than Laos.
GuineaLaosGuinea moved onto Laos · Equal-area projection
1.04×
Guinea is 1.04× the area of Laos.
 Guinea |  Laos | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaGuinea: 1.04× the area | 245,857 km²#77 of 194 | 236,800 km²#82 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Landlocked |
| Land neighbours | 6 | 5 |
| People | ||
| PopulationGuinea: 1.92× the population | 15,099,727#75 of 194 · 2025 | 7,873,046#103 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityGuinea: 1.85× the density | 61 / km²#125 of 194 | 33 / km²#146 of 194 |
| Urban populationLaos: 1.05× the urban share | 39%#153 of 192 · 2025 | 40%#149 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateGuinea: 1.72× the births per woman | 4.13 per woman#20 of 192 · 2024 | 2.40 per woman#77 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthGuinea: 0.99 points higher | +2.31%#33 of 192 · 2025 | +1.32%#74 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateGuinea: 1.59× the birth rate | 33.3 per 1,000#15 of 192 · 2024 | 20.9 per 1,000#64 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateGuinea: 1.45× the death rate | 9.0 per 1,000#52 of 192 · 2024 | 6.2 per 1,000#129 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Guinea: 10.7 points higher | 40.5%#19 of 192 · 2025 | 29.8%#70 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Laos: 1.3 points higher | 3.5%#153 of 192 · 2025 | 4.8%#127 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationGuinea: 0.3 per 1,000 higher | −1.1 per 1,000#119 of 192 · 2025 | −1.4 per 1,000#126 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadGuinea: 3.85× the refugees for its size | 3.16 per 1,000#33 of 190 · 2025 | 0.82 per 1,000#64 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyLaos: 8.3 years longer | 60.9 years#185 of 192 · 2024 | 69.2 years#136 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityGuinea: 2.2× the infant mortality | 59.8 per 1,000 births#7 of 191 · 2024 | 27.2 per 1,000 births#53 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsLaos: 1.57× the doctors per person | 0.21 per 1,000#147 of 178 · 2022 | 0.33 per 1,000#135 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolment | — | 14.9%#122 of 145 · 2023 |
| Human Development IndexLaos: 0.117 higher | 0.500#176 of 190 · 2023 | 0.617#144 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaLaos: 1.24× the income per person | $1,730#154 of 185 · 2025 | $2,150#147 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPGuinea: 1.55× the economy | $28.35B2025 | $18.3B2025 |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | Lower-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Laos: 2.1× the output per person | $4,935#151 of 184 · 2025 | $10,383#125 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthGuinea: 2.9 points higher | +7.4%#16 of 187 · 2025 | +4.5%#55 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationLaos: 4.1 points higher | +3.6%#71 of 176 · 2025 | +7.7%#31 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentGuinea: 4.33× the unemployment | 5.2%#86 of 178 · 2025 | 1.2%#171 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyGuinea: 1.65× the share in extreme poverty | 11.7%#43 of 149 · 2018 | 7.1%#49 of 149 · 2024 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Laos: 5.1 higher | 29.6#123 of 149 · 2018 | 34.7#73 of 149 · 2024 |
| Jobs in agricultureLaos: 21.2 points higher | 47.4% of jobs#25 of 178 · 2025 | 68.6% of jobs#6 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryGuinea: 6.8 points higher | 14.2% of jobs#142 of 178 · 2025 | 7.4% of jobs#169 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesGuinea: 14.5 points higher | 38.5% of jobs#149 of 178 · 2025 | 24.0% of jobs#171 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentGuinea: 19.7 points higher | 27.4% of GDP#4 of 184 · 2025 | 7.7% of GDP#23 of 184 · 2025 |
| Exports | 41.4% of GDP#66 of 168 · 2025 | — |
| Military spending | 2.0% of GDP#59 of 155 · 2025 | — |
| Internet usersLaos: 1.97× the share online | 33%#161 of 184 · 2024 | 66%#128 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsGuinea: 1.51× the mobile subscriptions | 98 per 100#131 of 191 · 2023 | 65 per 100#167 of 191 · 2023 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaLaos: 2.83× the forest share | 20% of land#120 of 192 · 2024 | 57% of land#36 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personLaos: 9.57× the CO₂ per person | 0.35 t a year#157 of 185 · 2024 | 3.35 t a year#79 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyGuinea: 17.4 points higher | 66.6%#31 of 190 · 2022 | 49.2%#50 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricityLaos: 42.7 points higher | 53.8%#173 of 192 · 2024 | 96.5%#124 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Guinea: 1.05× the air pollution | 27.3 µg/m³#56 of 191 · 2023 | 26.0 µg/m³#61 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landGuinea: 23.8 points higher | 42.6% of land#6 of 191 · 2025 | 18.8% of land#88 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landGuinea: 19.4 points higher | 24.7% of land#40 of 190 · 2024 | 5.3% of land#127 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressLaos: 3.43× the water stress | 1.4%#157 of 176 · 2022 | 4.8%#120 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationLaos: 1.11× the rain and snow | 1,651 mm#48 of 180 · 2022 | 1,834 mm#38 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityLaos: 1.28 higher | −0.73#156 of 193 · 2025 | +0.55#65 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionLaos: 0.08 higher | −1.07#158 of 193 · 2025 | −0.99#155 of 193 · 2025 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republic | One-party statecommunist party-led state |
| Member of | — | ASEAN |
| Capital | Conakry | Vientiane |
| Currency | Guinean franc (GNF) | Lao kip (LAK) |
| Official languages | French, languages of Guinea | Lao |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC | UTC+7 |
| Calling code | +224 | +856 |
| Region | Western Africa, Africa | South-Eastern Asia, Asia |
Area: Wikidata. Population, income, health, economy, environment and governance: World Bank. Human Development Index: UNDP. Government: CIA World Factbook. Ranks among the 194 independent states. All sources
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Guinea sits at about 10° N and is stretched to 1.03× its true area; Laos at 18° N is stretched to 1.11×. Here the two are distorted about the same amount, so Mercator gets this pair roughly right. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Guinea bigger than Laos?
- Yes. Guinea is 4% larger than Laos. Guinea covers 245,857 km² and Laos covers 236,800 km².
- How many times does Laos fit into Guinea?
- About 1.0 times: Guinea has 1.04× the area of Laos.
- Why do Guinea and Laos look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Guinea is drawn about 1.03× its true area there and Laos about 1.11×. For this pair the distortion is similar, so Mercator gets the comparison roughly right. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Guinea or Laos?
- Guinea: 15,099,727 people against 7,873,046. Density: Guinea 61 per km², Laos 33 per km².
- Which is richer, Guinea or Laos?
- By gross national income per person, Laos: $2,150 against $1,730 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.24× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Guinea or Laos?
- In Laos: life expectancy at birth is 69.2 years, against 60.9 — 8.3 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Guinea and Laos have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Guinea: presidential republic; Laos: one-party state.