Share of population urban in Malaysia
Malaysia: Share of population urban was 77.39 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
77.39
Change on year
up 0.6%
World rank
81st
of 236 countries
All-time high
77.39
in 2025
All-time low
20.62
in 1950
Years of data
76
1950–2025
Share of population urban in Malaysia, 1950–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, share of population urban in Malaysia stood at 77.39. That is the highest value across all 76 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.6% on the previous year and up 5.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of population urban in Malaysia peaked at 77.39 in 2025 and was at its lowest, 20.62, in 1950.
Malaysia ranks 81st of 236 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 76 years of available data.
Share of population urban in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 20.62 | — |
| 1951 | 21.26 | +3.1% |
| 1952 | 21.88 | +2.9% |
| 1953 | 22.49 | +2.8% |
| 1954 | 23.09 | +2.6% |
| 1955 | 23.65 | +2.5% |
| 1956 | 24.2 | +2.3% |
| 1957 | 24.72 | +2.1% |
| 1958 | 25.2 | +2.0% |
| 1959 | 25.65 | +1.8% |
| 1960 | 26.07 | +1.6% |
| 1961 | 26.46 | +1.5% |
| 1962 | 26.82 | +1.4% |
| 1963 | 27.17 | +1.3% |
| 1964 | 27.5 | +1.2% |
| 1965 | 27.83 | +1.2% |
| 1966 | 28.14 | +1.1% |
| 1967 | 28.46 | +1.1% |
| 1968 | 28.77 | +1.1% |
| 1969 | 29.09 | +1.1% |
| 1970 | 29.43 | +1.1% |
| 1971 | 29.77 | +1.2% |
| 1972 | 30.14 | +1.2% |
| 1973 | 30.53 | +1.3% |
| 1974 | 30.94 | +1.4% |
| 1975 | 31.39 | +1.4% |
| 1976 | 31.87 | +1.5% |
| 1977 | 32.39 | +1.6% |
| 1978 | 32.96 | +1.7% |
| 1979 | 33.57 | +1.9% |
| 1980 | 34.24 | +2.0% |
| 1981 | 35.09 | +2.5% |
| 1982 | 36.19 | +3.1% |
| 1983 | 37.51 | +3.6% |
| 1984 | 38.99 | +4.0% |
| 1985 | 40.6 | +4.1% |
| 1986 | 42.29 | +4.2% |
| 1987 | 44.02 | +4.1% |
| 1988 | 45.75 | +3.9% |
| 1989 | 47.44 | +3.7% |
| 1990 | 49.03 | +3.4% |
| 1991 | 50.49 | +3.0% |
| 1992 | 51.86 | +2.7% |
| 1993 | 53.23 | +2.6% |
| 1994 | 54.59 | +2.5% |
| 1995 | 55.92 | +2.5% |
| 1996 | 57.23 | +2.3% |
| 1997 | 58.5 | +2.2% |
| 1998 | 59.72 | +2.1% |
| 1999 | 60.88 | +1.9% |
| 2000 | 61.97 | +1.8% |
| 2001 | 63.02 | +1.7% |
| 2002 | 64.06 | +1.6% |
| 2003 | 65.08 | +1.6% |
| 2004 | 66.06 | +1.5% |
| 2005 | 67.02 | +1.4% |
| 2006 | 67.92 | +1.3% |
| 2007 | 68.77 | +1.2% |
| 2008 | 69.54 | +1.1% |
| 2009 | 70.25 | +1.0% |
| 2010 | 70.86 | +0.9% |
| 2011 | 71.42 | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 71.97 | +0.8% |
| 2013 | 72.49 | +0.7% |
| 2014 | 72.98 | +0.7% |
| 2015 | 73.44 | +0.6% |
| 2016 | 73.86 | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 74.24 | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 74.56 | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 74.84 | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 75.05 | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 75.51 | +0.6% |
| 2022 | 75.97 | +0.6% |
| 2023 | 76.44 | +0.6% |
| 2024 | 76.92 | +0.6% |
| 2025 | 77.39 | +0.6% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 77.39 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 65.53, 1.2× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 77.39 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 65.45, 1.2× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 23.28 | 20.62 | 25.65 | 10 |
| 1960s | 27.63 | 26.07 | 29.09 | 10 |
| 1970s | 31.3 | 29.43 | 33.57 | 10 |
| 1980s | 40.21 | 34.24 | 47.44 | 10 |
| 1990s | 55.15 | 49.03 | 60.88 | 10 |
| 2000s | 66.37 | 61.97 | 70.25 | 10 |
| 2010s | 73.07 | 70.86 | 74.84 | 10 |
| 2020s | 76.21 | 75.05 | 77.39 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More population data for Malaysia
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate -0.2671 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate -5.88 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate -0.2671 % change on previous year (2100)
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate -0.2686 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 05 - Demographic estimates 41,032 Persons (2050)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 0.8625 Percent per annum (2030)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.1472 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate -0.278 (2100)
- Population density 134 (2100)
- Projected population under age 5 1.91 million (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of population urban in Malaysia?
- Share of population urban in Malaysia was 77.39 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of population urban recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 77.39 in 2025.
- What is the lowest share of population urban recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 20.62 in 1950.
- How does Malaysia rank for share of population urban?
- Malaysia ranks 81st out of 236 countries with data for 2025.
- Is share of population urban 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 Our World in Data, published as part of Share of population urban. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 76 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).