Iraq vs Malaysia: Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas
Iraq
5.26 million people
in 2020
Malaysia
6.00 million people
in 2020
Iraq rank
57th
Malaysia rank
54th
Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas over time
- Iraq
- Malaysia
How they compare
Malaysia currently reports 6.00 million people against 5.26 million people in Iraq, a difference of 741,460 people.
That makes Malaysia's figure about 1.1 times Iraq's.
Across all 15 years both countries report, Malaysia has been ahead every year.
Iraq ranks 57th and Malaysia ranks 54th of 236 countries.
Malaysia has averaged higher in every one of the 8 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Iraq | Malaysia | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 2.44 million people | 2.69 million people | 247,605 people | Malaysia |
| 1960s | 2.74 million people | 3.18 million people | 440,140 people | Malaysia |
| 1970s | 3.12 million people | 3.66 million people | 540,195 people | Malaysia |
| 1980s | 3.79 million people | 4.36 million people | 571,320 people | Malaysia |
| 1990s | 4.39 million people | 5.11 million people | 711,790 people | Malaysia |
| 2000s | 4.77 million people | 5.41 million people | 635,915 people | Malaysia |
| 2010s | 4.97 million people | 5.73 million people | 754,290 people | Malaysia |
| 2020s | 5.26 million people | 6.00 million people | 741,460 people | Malaysia |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas, Iraq or Malaysia?
- Malaysia, at 6.00 million people against 5.26 million people in Iraq as of 2020.
- What is the difference in number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas between Iraq and Malaysia?
- 741,460 people, with Malaysia ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Iraq and Malaysia?
- 15 years are reported by both, from 1950 to 2020.
- How do Iraq and Malaysia rank globally for number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas?
- Iraq ranks 57th and Malaysia ranks 54th of 236 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC) (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as Number of people living in cities, towns and rural areas. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Estimated number of people living in rural areas. Rural areas are identified using satellite imagery and population data, applying the same definitions across countries.