Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Malaysia
Malaysia: Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education was 6 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
6
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
181st
of 214 countries
All-time high
6
in 2003
All-time low
0
in 1998
Years of data
28
1998–2025
Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Malaysia, 1998–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
In 2025, number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Malaysia stood at 6. That is the highest value across all 28 years on record.
The figure is unchanged over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Malaysia peaked at 6 in 2003 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1998.
Malaysia ranks 181st of 214 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 28 years of available data.
Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 0 | — |
| 1999 | 0 | — |
| 2000 | 0 | — |
| 2001 | 0 | — |
| 2002 | 0 | — |
| 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 9.5, 63% of the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 6 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 9, 67% of the median. (33 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2000s | 4.2 | 0 | 6 | 10 |
| 2010s | 6 | 6 | 6 | 10 |
| 2020s | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
- 181 Benin 6 compare
- 181 Cameroon 6 compare
- 181 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 6 compare
- 181 Comoros 6 compare
- 181 Guinea 6 compare
- 181 Equatorial Guinea 6 compare
- 181 Guyana 6 compare
- 181 Haiti 6 compare
- 181 Iraq 6 compare
- 181 Jamaica 6 compare
- 181 Liberia 6 compare
- 181 Nicaragua 6 compare
- 181 Rwanda 6 compare
- 181 Singapore 6 compare
- 181 Sao Tome and Principe 6 compare
- 181 Suriname 6 compare
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 number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Malaysia?
- Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education in Malaysia was 6 in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 6 in 2003.
- What is the lowest number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1998.
- How does Malaysia rank for number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education?
- Malaysia ranks 181st out of 214 countries with data for 2025.
- Is number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is unchanged. 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 Number of years of compulsory primary and secondary education guaranteed in legal frameworks. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 28 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release