Demographics & population — Malaysia
Population size, age structure, migration, ethnicity, language, education, and health indicators.
Profile updated 2026-06-02
⚡ Demographics & population at a glance
Population size, age structure, migration, ethnicity, language, education, and health indicators. Key figure for Malaysia: 32,652,083
Immigration rules and fees change frequently — confirm current requirements on official government or embassy websites.
Population overview
- Population
32,652,083
- Population Growth Rate
1.51%
- Urban Population
- Population in Major Urban Areas
- KUALA LUMPUR (capital) 1.556 million
- Klang 1.19 million
- Johor Bahru 1.045 million
Age & family
Migration
- Net Migration Rate - migrant(s)/1,000 population
-0.35
Ethnicity & language
- Ethnic Groups
Malay and other indigenous 58%, Chinese 24%, Indian 8%, others 10%
- Nationality Noun
Malaysian(s)
Education
- Literacy - total population
88.7%
- Literacy - male
92%
- Literacy - female
85.4%
- Literacy Definition
age 15 and over can read and write
- Education Expenditures - percent of GDP
5.9%
- Total School Life Expectancy - (primary to tertiary)
Health & living conditions
- Life Expectancy at Birth
- Infant Mortality Rate
- Infant Mortality Rate - total deaths/1,000 live births
- Maternal Mortality Rate - deaths/100,000 live births
29
- Physicians Density - physicians/1,000 population
1.2
- Hospital Bed Density - beds/1,000 population
1.8
- Health Expenditures - percent of GDP
3.6%
- Major Infectious Diseases - degree of risk
intermediate
- Obesity - adult prevalence rate
14%
- Drinking Water Source - percent of urban population improved
- Sanitation Facility Access - percent of urban population improved
- Underweight - percent of children under five years
12.9%