Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female in Malaysia
Malaysia: Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female was 94.7% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female in Malaysia, 1980–2022
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics. Measured in %.
Analysis
Malaysia recorded 94.7% for adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female in 2022. That is the highest value across all 9 years on record.
The figure is up 1.1% on the previous year and up 4.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female in Malaysia peaked at 94.7% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 61.2%, in 1980.
That places Malaysia 36th out of 89 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.
Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 61.2% | — |
| 1991 | 77.3% | +26.2% |
| 2000 | 85.3% | +10.4% |
| 2010 | 90.8% | +6.3% |
| 2016 | 93.4% | +2.9% |
| 2017 | 93.5% | +0.2% |
| 2018 | 93.5% | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 93.7% | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 94.7% | +1.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 61.2% | 61.2% | 61.2% | 1 |
| 1990s | 77.3% | 77.3% | 77.3% | 1 |
| 2000s | 85.3% | 85.3% | 85.3% | 1 |
| 2010s | 93.0% | 90.8% | 93.7% | 5 |
| 2020s | 94.7% | 94.7% | 94.7% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More education data for Malaysia
- Teachers in secondary education, both sexes (number), gaps filled 217,105 (2024)
- Repeaters in primary education, all grades, both sexes (number), gaps 0 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, male (number), gaps filled 475,967 (2024)
- Enrolment in pre-primary education, female (number), gaps filled 460,041 (2024)
- Secondary education, pupils, gaps filled 2.64 million (2024)
- Primary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Primary education, pupils, gaps filled 3.06 million (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, annual growth rate -1.2 % change on previous year (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Primary education, pupils, per capita 0.0859 units per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female in Malaysia?
- Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female in Malaysia was 94.7% in 2022, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 94.7% in 2022.
- What is the lowest adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 61.2% in 1980.
- How does Malaysia rank for adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female?
- Malaysia ranks 36th out of 89 countries with data for 2022.
- Is adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics, published as part of Adult literacy rate, population 15+ years, female (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 9 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release