A semiconductor laser element having an advantageous vertical light confinement efficiency, a low threshold current and a low element resistance is provided. The semiconductor laser element has a substrate and a stacked structure formed thereon, where the stacked structure comprises a buffer layer, an n-Al.sub.0.6Ga.sub.0.4As cladding layer, an n-Al.sub.0.47Ga.sub.0.53As cladding layer, an active layer, a p-Al.sub.0.47Ga.sub.0.53As first cladding layer, an Al.sub.0.55Ga.sub.0.45As etching stop layer, a p-Al.sub.0.47Ga.sub.0.53As second cladding layer, a p-Al.sub.0.6Ga.sub.0.4As third cladding layer, and a p-GaAs contact layer. The second and third cladding layers, and the contact layer are formed as a stripe-patterned ridge, and serve as a current injection regions. Both lateral portions of the ridge are filled with an n-type current blocking layer and serve as non-current-injection regions. Because the cladding layers on the active-layer-section side have a refractive index larger than that of the cladding layers disposed outward thereof, light leaked from the active layer section can efficiently be confined within the cladding layers on the active-layer-section side.