Duration of compulsory education in Malaysia
Malaysia: Duration of compulsory education was 6 in 2025. ▬ Flat
Latest (2025)
6
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
182nd
of 205 countries
All-time high
6
in 2003
All-time low
6
in 2003
Years of data
23
2003–2025
Duration of compulsory education in Malaysia, 2003–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
Malaysia recorded 6 for duration of compulsory education in 2025. That is the highest value across all 23 years on record.
That represents a change of unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, duration of compulsory education in Malaysia peaked at 6 in 2003 and was at its lowest, 6, in 2003.
That places Malaysia 182nd out of 205 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
Duration of compulsory education in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 6 | — |
| 2004 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 6 | +0.0% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 6 is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 10, 60% of the median. (56 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 6 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 9, 67% of the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 |
| 2010s | 6 | 6 | 6 | 10 |
| 2020s | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
- 182 Benin 6 compare
- 182 Cameroon 6 compare
- 182 Comoros 6 compare
- 182 Democratic Republic of Congo 6 compare
- 182 Equatorial Guinea 6 compare
- 182 Guinea 6 compare
- 182 Guyana 6 compare
- 182 Haiti 6 compare
- 182 Iraq 6 compare
- 182 Jamaica 6 compare
- 182 Liberia 6 compare
- 182 Rwanda 6 compare
- 182 Sao Tome and Principe 6 compare
- 182 Singapore 6 compare
- 182 Suriname 6 compare
More education data for Malaysia
- Gender gap education levels, gaps filled 88.9 (2024)
- Primary enrollment selected countries, gaps filled 88.03 (2024)
- 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)
Frequently asked questions
- What is duration of compulsory education in Malaysia?
- Duration of compulsory education in Malaysia was 6 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest duration of compulsory education recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 6 in 2003.
- What is the lowest duration of compulsory education recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 6 in 2003.
- How does Malaysia rank for duration of compulsory education?
- Malaysia ranks 182nd out of 205 countries with data for 2025.
- Is duration of compulsory education rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Duration of compulsory education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 23 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).