Cropland area in Laos
Laos: Cropland area was 1.61 million hectares in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
1.61 million hectares
Change on year
up 1.7%
World rank
100th
of 224 countries
All-time high
1.75 million hectares
in 2016
All-time low
650,000 hectares
in 1961
Years of data
63
1961–2023
Cropland area in Laos, 1961–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hectares.
Analysis
Laos recorded 1.61 million hectares for cropland area in 2023.
That represents a change of up 1.7% on the previous year and down 3.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, cropland area in Laos peaked at 1.75 million hectares in 2016 and was at its lowest, 650,000 hectares, in 1961.
That places Laos 100th out of 224 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 63 years of available data.
Cropland area in Laos, year by year
| Year | hectares | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 650,000 hectares | — |
| 1962 | 650,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 650,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 650,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 650,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 660,000 hectares | +1.5% |
| 1967 | 660,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 670,000 hectares | +1.5% |
| 1969 | 672,000 hectares | +0.3% |
| 1970 | 677,000 hectares | +0.7% |
| 1971 | 682,000 hectares | +0.7% |
| 1972 | 712,000 hectares | +4.4% |
| 1973 | 732,000 hectares | +2.8% |
| 1974 | 755,000 hectares | +3.1% |
| 1975 | 768,000 hectares | +1.7% |
| 1976 | 780,000 hectares | +1.6% |
| 1977 | 790,000 hectares | +1.3% |
| 1978 | 798,000 hectares | +1.0% |
| 1979 | 805,000 hectares | +0.9% |
| 1980 | 806,000 hectares | +0.1% |
| 1981 | 809,000 hectares | +0.4% |
| 1982 | 817,000 hectares | +1.0% |
| 1983 | 820,000 hectares | +0.4% |
| 1984 | 830,000 hectares | +1.2% |
| 1985 | 835,000 hectares | +0.6% |
| 1986 | 838,000 hectares | +0.4% |
| 1987 | 840,000 hectares | +0.2% |
| 1988 | 850,000 hectares | +1.2% |
| 1989 | 852,000 hectares | +0.2% |
| 1990 | 860,000 hectares | +0.9% |
| 1991 | 862,000 hectares | +0.2% |
| 1992 | 864,000 hectares | +0.2% |
| 1993 | 865,000 hectares | +0.1% |
| 1994 | 890,000 hectares | +2.9% |
| 1995 | 900,000 hectares | +1.1% |
| 1996 | 900,000 hectares | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 930,000 hectares | +3.3% |
| 1998 | 940,000 hectares | +1.1% |
| 1999 | 958,000 hectares | +1.9% |
| 2000 | 1.00 million hectares | +4.5% |
| 2001 | 1.05 million hectares | +5.0% |
| 2002 | 1.10 million hectares | +4.3% |
| 2003 | 1.14 million hectares | +4.1% |
| 2004 | 1.19 million hectares | +3.9% |
| 2005 | 1.24 million hectares | +4.1% |
| 2006 | 1.29 million hectares | +4.5% |
| 2007 | 1.34 million hectares | +3.7% |
| 2008 | 1.39 million hectares | +3.8% |
| 2009 | 1.47 million hectares | +5.7% |
| 2010 | 1.50 million hectares | +2.4% |
| 2011 | 1.54 million hectares | +2.4% |
| 2012 | 1.58 million hectares | +2.5% |
| 2013 | 1.67 million hectares | +5.5% |
| 2014 | 1.71 million hectares | +2.7% |
| 2015 | 1.74 million hectares | +1.5% |
| 2016 | 1.75 million hectares | +0.8% |
| 2017 | 1.68 million hectares | -3.8% |
| 2018 | 1.64 million hectares | -2.4% |
| 2019 | 1.59 million hectares | -3.5% |
| 2020 | 1.53 million hectares | -3.5% |
| 2021 | 1.53 million hectares | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 1.58 million hectares | +3.2% |
| 2023 | 1.61 million hectares | +1.7% |
Laos compared with similar countries
- Laos's 1.61 million hectares is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 2.82 million hectares, 57% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Laos's 1.61 million hectares is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 141,800 hectares, 11.4× the median. (36 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 656,889 hectares | 650,000 hectares | 672,000 hectares | 9 |
| 1970s | 749,900 hectares | 677,000 hectares | 805,000 hectares | 10 |
| 1980s | 829,700 hectares | 806,000 hectares | 852,000 hectares | 10 |
| 1990s | 896,900 hectares | 860,000 hectares | 958,000 hectares | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.22 million hectares | 1.00 million hectares | 1.47 million hectares | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.64 million hectares | 1.50 million hectares | 1.75 million hectares | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.56 million hectares | 1.53 million hectares | 1.61 million hectares | 4 |
Countries ranked near Laos
- 97 Burundi 1.67 million hectares compare
- 98 Turkmenistan 1.63 million hectares compare
- 99 Honduras 1.62 million hectares compare
- 101 Dominican Republic 1.52 million hectares compare
- 102 South Korea 1.51 million hectares compare
- 103 Rwanda 1.50 million hectares compare
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 cropland area in Laos?
- Cropland area in Laos was 1.61 million hectares in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest cropland area recorded in Laos?
- The highest recorded value was 1.75 million hectares in 2016.
- What is the lowest cropland area recorded in Laos?
- The lowest recorded value was 650,000 hectares in 1961.
- How does Laos rank for cropland area?
- Laos ranks 100th out of 224 countries with data for 2023.
- Is cropland area rising or falling in Laos?
- Over the last ten years it is down 3.3%. 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 Cropland area. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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