Distillers Country guides / Laos
Laos
A one-page guide to Laos for the spirits trade: the country, its people, its economy and how it drinks.
At a glance
- Capital
- Vientiane
- Official languages
- Lao
- Currency
- Lao kip (LAK)
- Time zone
- UTC+7 (no daylight saving)
- Area
- 236,800 km²
People
- Population
- 7.8 million (2025)
- Population growth
- 1.3% a year
- Living in towns and cities
- 40.3%
- Aged under 15
- 29.8%
- Aged 65 and over
- 4.8%
- Life expectancy
- 69.2 years
Economy
- GDP
- US$16.9 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$2,171 (2025)
- Economic growth
- 4.8% (2025)
- Inflation
- 7.7% (2025)
Climate
Tropical savanna shaped by the monsoon: a rainy season from May to October and a dry season from November to April, with the last two dry months the hottest. Wet-season flooding and road conditions can slow inland freight; warehouses need heat and humidity control.
Alcohol
- Alcohol is
- Legal
- Alcohol per adult a year
- 5.92 litres of pure alcohol (2024)
- Traditional drinks
- Lao-Lao (rice whisky), Lao-hai (jar rice drink), Beerlao (national beer)
Sources: World Bank (population, economy and demographics), WHO Global Health Observatory (alcohol per adult and drinking mix); Wikipedia - Lao-Lao; Wikipedia - Beerlao; Wikipedia - Laos; Ministry of Finance, Laos; Rumporter - Laodi rum, Laos. Figures are the latest each source publishes; the year is shown beside each one.