Khmu boy with catapult on is head - Laos

The Lao (Lao: ລາວ, Isan: ลาว, IPA: láːw) are an ethnic group native to Southeast Asia, belonging to the family of Tai peoples.

This article is about the demographic features of the population of Laos, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

Laos' population was estimated at about 6,48 million in July 2011, dispersed unevenly across the country. Most people live in valleys of the Mekong River and its tributaries. Vientiane Prefecture, which includes Vientiane, the capital and largest city of the country, had about 569,000 residents in 1999. The country's population density is 23.4/km².

In March 2005, the total population was 5.62 million (2.82 million females, 2.80 million males) in the 2005 census, an increase of 1 047 000 since the previous 1995 census.

The Demographics of Asia refers to the human population of Asia. The continent covers 29.4% of the Earth's land area and has a population of over 4 billion - accounting for about 56% of the world population. Together, China's and India's populations are estimated to be around 2.5 billion people.