Laos vs Uganda
Uganda and Laos are almost exactly the same size.
LaosUgandaLaos moved onto Uganda · Equal-area projection
0.98×
Laos is 0.98× the area of Uganda. Put the other way, Uganda is 1.02× the size of Laos.
 Laos |  Uganda | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaAbout the same area | 236,800 km²#82 of 194 | 241,038 km²#79 of 194 |
| Coastline | Landlocked | Landlocked |
| Land neighbours | 5 | 5 |
| People | ||
| PopulationUganda: 6.53× the population | 7,873,046#103 of 194 · 2025 | 51,384,894#31 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityUganda: 6.41× the density | 33 / km²#146 of 194 | 213 / km²#48 of 194 |
| Urban populationLaos: 1.26× the urban share | 40%#149 of 192 · 2025 | 32%#167 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateUganda: 1.74× the births per woman | 2.40 per woman#77 of 192 · 2024 | 4.17 per woman#19 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthUganda: 1.38 points higher | +1.32%#74 of 192 · 2025 | +2.70%#21 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateUganda: 1.65× the birth rate | 20.9 per 1,000#64 of 192 · 2024 | 34.4 per 1,000#11 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateLaos: 1.29× the death rate | 6.2 per 1,000#129 of 192 · 2024 | 4.8 per 1,000#176 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Uganda: 13.3 points higher | 29.8%#70 of 192 · 2025 | 43.1%#10 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Laos: 2.6 points higher | 4.8%#127 of 192 · 2025 | 2.2%#187 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationLaos: 0.9 per 1,000 higher | −1.4 per 1,000#126 of 192 · 2025 | −2.3 per 1,000#151 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadLaos: 3.28× the refugees for its size | 0.82 per 1,000#64 of 190 · 2025 | 0.25 per 1,000#94 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyLaos: 0.7 years longer | 69.2 years#136 of 192 · 2024 | 68.5 years#141 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityUganda: 1.32× the infant mortality | 27.2 per 1,000 births#53 of 191 · 2024 | 35.9 per 1,000 births#31 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsLaos: 1.74× the doctors per person | 0.33 per 1,000#135 of 178 · 2022 | 0.19 per 1,000#151 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolment | 14.9%#122 of 145 · 2023 | — |
| Human Development IndexLaos: 0.035 higher | 0.617#144 of 190 · 2023 | 0.582#154 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaLaos: 1.92× the income per person | $2,150#147 of 185 · 2025 | $1,120#166 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPUganda: 3.39× the economy | $18.3B2025 | $61.99B2025 |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | Low income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Laos: 2.98× the output per person | $10,383#125 of 184 · 2025 | $3,488#167 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthUganda: 1.8 points higher | +4.5%#55 of 187 · 2025 | +6.3%#26 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationLaos: 4.1 points higher | +7.7%#31 of 176 · 2025 | +3.6%#71 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentUganda: 2.25× the unemployment | 1.2%#171 of 178 · 2025 | 2.7%#149 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyUganda: 7.66× the share in extreme poverty | 7.1%#49 of 149 · 2024 | 54.4%#10 of 149 · 2023 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Uganda: 3.5 higher | 34.7#73 of 149 · 2024 | 38.2#51 of 149 · 2023 |
| Jobs in agricultureLaos: 3.7 points higher | 68.6% of jobs#6 of 178 · 2025 | 64.9% of jobs#9 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryLaos: 0.1 points higher | 7.4% of jobs#169 of 178 · 2025 | 7.3% of jobs#170 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesUganda: 3.9 points higher | 24.0% of jobs#171 of 178 · 2025 | 27.9% of jobs#168 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentLaos: 2.3 points higher | 7.7% of GDP#23 of 184 · 2025 | 5.4% of GDP#34 of 184 · 2025 |
| Exports | — | 21.4% of GDP#129 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spending | — | 2.0% of GDP#67 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersLaos: 7.37× the share online | 66%#128 of 184 · 2024 | 9%#183 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsUganda: 1.28× the mobile subscriptions | 65 per 100#167 of 191 · 2023 | 83 per 100#148 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaLaos: 4.76× the forest share | 57% of land#36 of 192 · 2024 | 12% of land#147 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personLaos: 19.7× the CO₂ per person | 3.35 t a year#79 of 185 · 2024 | 0.17 t a year#170 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyUganda: 41.7 points higher | 49.2%#50 of 190 · 2022 | 90.9%#5 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricityLaos: 41.2 points higher | 96.5%#124 of 192 · 2024 | 55.3%#169 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Uganda: 1.2× the air pollution | 26.0 µg/m³#61 of 191 · 2023 | 31.2 µg/m³#45 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landLaos: 2.7 points higher | 18.8% of land#88 of 191 · 2025 | 16.1% of land#106 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landUganda: 38.3 points higher | 5.3% of land#127 of 190 · 2024 | 43.6% of land#10 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressUganda: 1.21× the water stress | 4.8%#120 of 176 · 2022 | 5.8%#113 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationLaos: 1.55× the rain and snow | 1,834 mm#38 of 180 · 2022 | 1,180 mm#77 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityLaos: 1.42 higher | +0.55#65 of 193 · 2025 | −0.87#160 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionLaos: 0.12 higher | −0.99#155 of 193 · 2025 | −1.11#163 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | — | 9.0 per 100,000#32 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | One-party statecommunist party-led state | Presidential republic |
| Member of | ASEAN | — |
| Capital | Vientiane | Kampala |
| Currency | Lao kip (LAK) | Ugandan shilling (UGX) |
| Official languages | Lao | English, Swahili |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC+7 | UTC+3 |
| Calling code | +856 | +256 |
| Region | South-Eastern Asia, Asia | Eastern Africa, Africa |
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. Laos sits at about 18° N and is stretched to 1.11× its true area; Uganda at 1° N is stretched to 1.0×. 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 Laos bigger than Uganda?
- No. Laos and Uganda are almost exactly the same size. Laos covers 236,800 km² and Uganda covers 241,038 km².
- How many times does Laos fit into Uganda?
- About 1.0 times: Uganda has 1.02× the area of Laos.
- Why do Laos and Uganda look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Laos is drawn about 1.11× its true area there and Uganda about 1.0×. 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, Laos or Uganda?
- Uganda: 51,384,894 people against 7,873,046. Density: Laos 33 per km², Uganda 213 per km².
- Which is richer, Laos or Uganda?
- By gross national income per person, Laos: $2,150 against $1,120 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.92× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Laos or Uganda?
- In Laos: life expectancy at birth is 69.2 years, against 68.5 — 0.7 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Laos and Uganda have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Laos: one-party state; Uganda: presidential republic.