Cotton yields in Laos
Laos: Cotton yields was 1.38 tonnes per hectare in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
1.38 tonnes per hectare
Change on year
up 2.7%
World rank
47th
of 101 countries
All-time high
3.11 tonnes per hectare
in 1998
All-time low
0.628 tonnes per hectare
in 1978
Years of data
64
1961–2024
Cotton yields in Laos, 1961–2024
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes per hectare.
Analysis
The most recent figure for cotton yields in Laos is 1.38 tonnes per hectare, measured in 2024.
The figure is up 2.7% on the previous year and up 59.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cotton yields in Laos peaked at 3.11 tonnes per hectare in 1998 and was at its lowest, 0.628 tonnes per hectare, in 1978.
Laos ranks 47th of 101 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 64 years of available data.
Cotton yields in Laos, year by year
| Year | tonnes per hectare | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 0.9 tonnes per hectare | — |
| 1962 | 1.12 tonnes per hectare | +25.0% |
| 1963 | 1.12 tonnes per hectare | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 0.8182 tonnes per hectare | -27.3% |
| 1965 | 0.9818 tonnes per hectare | +20.0% |
| 1966 | 0.925 tonnes per hectare | -5.8% |
| 1967 | 0.9 tonnes per hectare | -2.7% |
| 1968 | 1.23 tonnes per hectare | +36.6% |
| 1969 | 1.35 tonnes per hectare | +9.8% |
| 1970 | 1.45 tonnes per hectare | +7.5% |
| 1971 | 1.63 tonnes per hectare | +12.5% |
| 1972 | 1.06 tonnes per hectare | -34.8% |
| 1973 | 0.9661 tonnes per hectare | -9.2% |
| 1974 | 1.55 tonnes per hectare | +60.9% |
| 1975 | 2.16 tonnes per hectare | +39.0% |
| 1976 | 2.17 tonnes per hectare | +0.6% |
| 1977 | 2.27 tonnes per hectare | +4.3% |
| 1978 | 0.628 tonnes per hectare | -72.3% |
| 1979 | 0.8036 tonnes per hectare | +28.0% |
| 1980 | 2.1 tonnes per hectare | +161.1% |
| 1981 | 2.13 tonnes per hectare | +1.6% |
| 1982 | 2.19 tonnes per hectare | +2.6% |
| 1983 | 2.07 tonnes per hectare | -5.2% |
| 1984 | 2.12 tonnes per hectare | +2.5% |
| 1985 | 1.56 tonnes per hectare | -26.8% |
| 1986 | 1.85 tonnes per hectare | +18.8% |
| 1987 | 2.46 tonnes per hectare | +33.0% |
| 1988 | 1.95 tonnes per hectare | -20.6% |
| 1989 | 1.85 tonnes per hectare | -5.1% |
| 1990 | 2.15 tonnes per hectare | +15.8% |
| 1991 | 1.77 tonnes per hectare | -17.3% |
| 1992 | 2.03 tonnes per hectare | +14.6% |
| 1993 | 2.26 tonnes per hectare | +11.2% |
| 1994 | 2.47 tonnes per hectare | +9.4% |
| 1995 | 2.74 tonnes per hectare | +10.8% |
| 1996 | 2.22 tonnes per hectare | -19.0% |
| 1997 | 2.91 tonnes per hectare | +31.2% |
| 1998 | 3.11 tonnes per hectare | +6.8% |
| 1999 | 2.89 tonnes per hectare | -7.0% |
| 2000 | 2.94 tonnes per hectare | +1.5% |
| 2001 | 2.89 tonnes per hectare | -1.6% |
| 2002 | 2.65 tonnes per hectare | -8.2% |
| 2003 | 2.72 tonnes per hectare | +2.6% |
| 2004 | 2.73 tonnes per hectare | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 2.88 tonnes per hectare | +5.7% |
| 2006 | 2.77 tonnes per hectare | -3.9% |
| 2007 | 2.53 tonnes per hectare | -8.9% |
| 2008 | 2.62 tonnes per hectare | +3.5% |
| 2009 | 2.73 tonnes per hectare | +4.5% |
| 2010 | 0.7616 tonnes per hectare | -72.1% |
| 2011 | 0.8954 tonnes per hectare | +17.6% |
| 2012 | 1.01 tonnes per hectare | +12.6% |
| 2013 | 1.1 tonnes per hectare | +8.7% |
| 2014 | 0.8657 tonnes per hectare | -21.0% |
| 2015 | 0.9646 tonnes per hectare | +11.4% |
| 2016 | 1.14 tonnes per hectare | +18.7% |
| 2017 | 1.21 tonnes per hectare | +5.8% |
| 2018 | 1.14 tonnes per hectare | -5.9% |
| 2019 | 1.12 tonnes per hectare | -1.8% |
| 2020 | 1.44 tonnes per hectare | +28.4% |
| 2021 | 1.17 tonnes per hectare | -18.8% |
| 2022 | 1.37 tonnes per hectare | +17.8% |
| 2023 | 1.34 tonnes per hectare | -2.4% |
| 2024 | 1.38 tonnes per hectare | +2.7% |
Laos compared with similar countries
- Laos's 1.38 tonnes per hectare is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 1.31 tonnes per hectare, 1.1× the median. (33 countries reporting)
- Laos's 1.38 tonnes per hectare is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 1.54 tonnes per hectare, 90% of the median. (11 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Cotton yields in Laos changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | +161.1% | 0.8036 tonnes per hectare | 2.1 tonnes per hectare |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 1.04 tonnes per hectare | 0.8182 tonnes per hectare | 1.35 tonnes per hectare | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.47 tonnes per hectare | 0.628 tonnes per hectare | 2.27 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.03 tonnes per hectare | 1.56 tonnes per hectare | 2.46 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.46 tonnes per hectare | 1.77 tonnes per hectare | 3.11 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.75 tonnes per hectare | 2.53 tonnes per hectare | 2.94 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.02 tonnes per hectare | 0.7616 tonnes per hectare | 1.21 tonnes per hectare | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.34 tonnes per hectare | 1.17 tonnes per hectare | 1.44 tonnes per hectare | 5 |
Countries ranked near Laos
More agriculture & rural data for Laos
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 9.89 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.1662 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 386.32 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.0583 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0.0003 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.5969 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 16.6% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 16.6% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 10.3% (2023)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 4.6% (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is cotton yields in Laos?
- Cotton yields in Laos was 1.38 tonnes per hectare in 2024, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest cotton yields recorded in Laos?
- The highest recorded value was 3.11 tonnes per hectare in 1998.
- What is the lowest cotton yields recorded in Laos?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.628 tonnes per hectare in 1978.
- How does Laos rank for cotton yields?
- Laos ranks 47th out of 101 countries with data for 2024.
- Is cotton yields rising or falling in Laos?
- Over the last ten years it is up 59.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Laos data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Cotton yields. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Yield is the amount produced per unit of land used, measured in tonnes per hectare.