Population, total in Malaysia
Malaysia: Population, total was 35.98 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Population, total in Malaysia, 1960–2025
Source: World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
Malaysia recorded 35.98 million for population, total in 2025. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.2% on the previous year and up 15.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population, total in Malaysia peaked at 35.98 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 7.96 million, in 1960.
That places Malaysia 45th out of 215 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 8.95 million | 7.96 million | 9.95 million | 10 |
| 1970s | 11.36 million | 10.18 million | 12.63 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 15.07 million | 12.98 million | 17.32 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 20.11 million | 17.83 million | 22.44 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 25.55 million | 22.97 million | 28.12 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 31.01 million | 28.66 million | 33.44 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 34.92 million | 33.89 million | 35.98 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
- 42 Uzbekistan 37.05 million compare
- 43 Saudi Arabia 36.97 million compare
- 44 Poland 36.44 million compare
- 46 Mozambique 35.63 million compare
- 47 Ghana 35.06 million compare
- 48 Peru 34.58 million compare
More climate change data for Malaysia
- Population growth 1.2% (2025)
- Urban population growth 1.8% (2025)
- Urban population 27.84 million (2025)
- Urban population 77.4% (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million 25.0% (2025)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 6.71 billion cubic meters (2022)
- Annual freshwater withdrawals, total 1.2% (2022)
- Terrestrial protected areas 13.3% (2025)
- Terrestrial and marine protected areas 8.4% (2025)
- Marine protected areas 4.8% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is population, total in Malaysia?
- Population, total in Malaysia was 35.98 million in 2025, according to World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest population, total recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 35.98 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest population, total recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 7.96 million in 1960.
- How does Malaysia rank for population, total?
- Malaysia ranks 45th out of 215 countries with data for 2025.
- Is population, total rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Population, total. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Total population is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship. The values shown are midyear estimates.