Urban population in Malaysia
Malaysia: Urban population was 77.4% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Urban population in Malaysia, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in % of total population.
Analysis
The most recent figure for urban population in Malaysia is 77.4%, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.6% on the previous year and up 5.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population in Malaysia peaked at 77.4% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 26.1%, in 1960.
Malaysia ranks 68th of 217 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Urban population in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | % of total population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 26.1% | — |
| 1961 | 26.5% | +1.5% |
| 1962 | 26.8% | +1.4% |
| 1963 | 27.2% | +1.3% |
| 1964 | 27.5% | +1.2% |
| 1965 | 27.8% | +1.2% |
| 1966 | 28.1% | +1.1% |
| 1967 | 28.5% | +1.1% |
| 1968 | 28.8% | +1.1% |
| 1969 | 29.1% | +1.1% |
| 1970 | 29.4% | +1.1% |
| 1971 | 29.8% | +1.2% |
| 1972 | 30.1% | +1.2% |
| 1973 | 30.5% | +1.3% |
| 1974 | 30.9% | +1.4% |
| 1975 | 31.4% | +1.4% |
| 1976 | 31.9% | +1.5% |
| 1977 | 32.4% | +1.6% |
| 1978 | 33.0% | +1.7% |
| 1979 | 33.6% | +1.9% |
| 1980 | 34.2% | +2.0% |
| 1981 | 35.1% | +2.5% |
| 1982 | 36.2% | +3.1% |
| 1983 | 37.5% | +3.6% |
| 1984 | 39.0% | +4.0% |
| 1985 | 40.6% | +4.1% |
| 1986 | 42.3% | +4.2% |
| 1987 | 44.0% | +4.1% |
| 1988 | 45.8% | +3.9% |
| 1989 | 47.4% | +3.7% |
| 1990 | 49.0% | +3.4% |
| 1991 | 50.5% | +3.0% |
| 1992 | 51.9% | +2.7% |
| 1993 | 53.2% | +2.6% |
| 1994 | 54.6% | +2.5% |
| 1995 | 55.9% | +2.5% |
| 1996 | 57.2% | +2.3% |
| 1997 | 58.5% | +2.2% |
| 1998 | 59.7% | +2.1% |
| 1999 | 60.9% | +1.9% |
| 2000 | 62.0% | +1.8% |
| 2001 | 63.0% | +1.7% |
| 2002 | 64.1% | +1.6% |
| 2003 | 65.1% | +1.6% |
| 2004 | 66.1% | +1.5% |
| 2005 | 67.0% | +1.4% |
| 2006 | 67.9% | +1.3% |
| 2007 | 68.8% | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 69.5% | +1.1% |
| 2009 | 70.2% | +1.0% |
| 2010 | 70.9% | +0.9% |
| 2011 | 71.4% | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 72.0% | +0.8% |
| 2013 | 72.5% | +0.7% |
| 2014 | 73.0% | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 73.4% | +0.6% |
| 2016 | 73.9% | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 74.2% | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 74.6% | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 74.8% | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 75.1% | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 75.5% | +0.6% |
| 2022 | 76.0% | +0.6% |
| 2023 | 76.4% | +0.6% |
| 2024 | 76.9% | +0.6% |
| 2025 | 77.4% | +0.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 27.6% | 26.1% | 29.1% | 10 |
| 1970s | 31.3% | 29.4% | 33.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 40.2% | 34.2% | 47.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 55.1% | 49.0% | 60.9% | 10 |
| 2000s | 66.4% | 62.0% | 70.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 73.1% | 70.9% | 74.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 76.2% | 75.1% | 77.4% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More climate change data for Malaysia
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 4,551 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 1,936 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 2,616 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 7.31 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 93.41 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 7,214 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 3,641 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 3,573 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 13.74 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 127.6 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population in Malaysia?
- Urban population in Malaysia was 77.4% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 77.4% in 2025.
- What is the lowest urban population recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 26.1% in 1960.
- How does Malaysia rank for urban population?
- Malaysia ranks 68th out of 217 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Urban population (% of total population). 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
Urban population refers to people living in urban areas as defined by national statistical offices. The data are collected and smoothed by United Nations Population Division.