A surface emitting laser includes a cavity region formed on a group-III-V compound substrate, which includes an active layer and a current confinement layer that has an aluminum oxide compound and confines a current path through which a current is injected into the active layer, an upper DBR mirror and a lower DBR mirror formed on the substrate, sandwiching the cavity region, and a graded-composition layer disposed to contact the current confinement layer, which has an aluminum composition ratio decreasing monotonically as a distance from the current confinement layer increases. The graded-composition layer includes a first region that contacts the current confinement layer and an oxidation stop layer that contacts the first region and that has a change rate of the aluminum composition ratio larger than that of the first region. The graded-composition layer is oxidized from an interface with the current confinement layer to at least a portion of the oxidation stop layer.