A surface emitting laser element includes a lower Bragg reflection mirror; an upper Bragg reflection mirror; and a resonator region formed between the lower Bragg reflection mirror and the upper Bragg reflection mirror, and including an active layer. A wavelength adjustment region is formed in the lower Bragg reflection mirror or the upper Bragg reflection mirror, and includes a second phase adjustment layer, a wavelength adjustment layer and a first phase adjustment layer, arranged in this order from a side where the resonator region is formed. An optical thickness of the wavelength adjustment region is approximately (2N+1)×λ/4, and the wavelength adjustment layer is formed at a position where an optical distance from an end of the wavelength adjustment region on the side of the resonator region is approximately M×λ/2, where λ is a wavelength of emitted light, M and N are positive integers, and M is N or less.