Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality in Laos
Laos: Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality was 10.6% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality in Laos, 1988–2022
Source: UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality in Laos is 10.6%, measured in 2022.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.6% on the previous year and down 20.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality in Laos peaked at 14.5% in 2014 and was at its lowest, 3.1%, in 1990.
That places Laos 155th out of 187 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality in Laos, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1988 | 4.6% | — |
| 1989 | 3.2% | -29.9% |
| 1990 | 3.1% | -4.5% |
| 1991 | 3.8% | +22.8% |
| 1992 | 3.6% | -4.4% |
| 1993 | 3.3% | -9.2% |
| 1994 | 3.9% | +18.3% |
| 1995 | 3.8% | -1.6% |
| 1996 | 4.1% | +7.6% |
| 1997 | 3.6% | -12.4% |
| 1998 | 5.8% | +60.2% |
| 1999 | 6.6% | +15.0% |
| 2000 | 7.7% | +17.1% |
| 2001 | 8.7% | +12.1% |
| 2002 | 7.7% | -11.5% |
| 2003 | 7.2% | -6.1% |
| 2004 | 7.3% | +1.1% |
| 2005 | 7.6% | +3.9% |
| 2006 | 8.2% | +8.0% |
| 2007 | 9.3% | +13.0% |
| 2008 | 10.0% | +8.3% |
| 2009 | 11.7% | +16.7% |
| 2010 | 12.1% | +3.5% |
| 2011 | 12.7% | +4.6% |
| 2012 | 13.4% | +5.6% |
| 2013 | 13.5% | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 14.5% | +7.5% |
| 2015 | 13.8% | -5.2% |
| 2016 | 12.4% | -9.7% |
| 2017 | 12.2% | -1.5% |
| 2018 | 12.8% | +4.6% |
| 2019 | 10.9% | -15.0% |
| 2020 | 9.4% | -13.6% |
| 2021 | 10.3% | +9.0% |
| 2022 | 10.6% | +3.6% |
Laos compared with similar countries
- Laos's 10.6% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 14.9%, 71% of the median. (46 countries reporting)
- Laos's 10.6% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 18.1%, 59% of the median. (30 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 3.9% | 3.2% | 4.6% | 2 |
| 1990s | 4.1% | 3.1% | 6.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 8.5% | 7.2% | 11.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 12.8% | 10.9% | 14.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 10.1% | 9.4% | 10.6% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Laos
More poverty & inequality data for Laos
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 2 surveys (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per person (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty 2.42 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 4,196 kg per hectare (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate 2.31 % change on previous year (2024)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 10.62 (2022)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2022)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, annual growth rate 3.57 % change on previous year (2022)
Frequently asked questions
- What is tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality in Laos?
- Tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality in Laos was 10.6% in 2022, according to UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality recorded in Laos?
- The highest recorded value was 14.5% in 2014.
- What is the lowest tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality recorded in Laos?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.1% in 1990.
- How does Laos rank for tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality?
- Laos ranks 155th out of 187 countries with data for 2022.
- Is tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality rising or falling in Laos?
- Over the last ten years it is down 20.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Laos data come from?
- The figures come from UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Taxes include direct and indirect taxes as well as social contributions. The Gini coefficient measures inequality on a scale from 0 to 1. Higher values indicate higher inequality.