Population having attained at least basic education in Malaysia
Malaysia: Population having attained at least basic education was 97.8 in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Population having attained at least basic education in Malaysia, 1870–2020
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
Malaysia recorded 97.8 for population having attained at least basic education in 2020. That is the highest value across all 31 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population having attained at least basic education in Malaysia peaked at 97.8 in 2020 and was at its lowest, 0.3, in 1870.
That places Malaysia 47th out of 111 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Population having attained at least basic education in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1870 | 0.3 | — |
| 1875 | 0.5 | +66.7% |
| 1880 | 0.6 | +20.0% |
| 1885 | 0.9 | +50.0% |
| 1890 | 1.2 | +33.3% |
| 1895 | 1.6 | +33.3% |
| 1900 | 2.2 | +37.5% |
| 1905 | 5.2 | +136.4% |
| 1910 | 8.4 | +61.5% |
| 1915 | 11.2 | +33.3% |
| 1920 | 14 | +25.0% |
| 1925 | 20 | +42.9% |
| 1930 | 25.4 | +27.0% |
| 1935 | 29.9 | +17.7% |
| 1940 | 33.8 | +13.0% |
| 1945 | 37.7 | +11.5% |
| 1950 | 42 | +11.4% |
| 1955 | 46.3 | +10.2% |
| 1960 | 52 | +12.3% |
| 1965 | 58.4 | +12.3% |
| 1970 | 66.5 | +13.9% |
| 1975 | 70.8 | +6.5% |
| 1980 | 76.2 | +7.6% |
| 1985 | 80.9 | +6.2% |
| 1990 | 84.9 | +4.9% |
| 1995 | 88.4 | +4.1% |
| 2000 | 91.1 | +3.1% |
| 2005 | 93.1 | +2.2% |
| 2010 | 95.6 | +2.7% |
| 2015 | 96.9 | +1.4% |
| 2020 | 97.8 | +0.9% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 97.8 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 97.4, 1.0× the median. (30 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 97.8 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 98.3, 99% of the median. (13 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Population having attained at least basic education in Malaysia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1905 | +136.4% | 2.2 | 5.2 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1870s | 0.4 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 2 |
| 1880s | 0.75 | 0.6 | 0.9 | 2 |
| 1890s | 1.4 | 1.2 | 1.6 | 2 |
| 1900s | 3.7 | 2.2 | 5.2 | 2 |
| 1910s | 9.8 | 8.4 | 11.2 | 2 |
| 1920s | 17 | 14 | 20 | 2 |
| 1930s | 27.65 | 25.4 | 29.9 | 2 |
| 1940s | 35.75 | 33.8 | 37.7 | 2 |
| 1950s | 44.15 | 42 | 46.3 | 2 |
| 1960s | 55.2 | 52 | 58.4 | 2 |
| 1970s | 68.65 | 66.5 | 70.8 | 2 |
| 1980s | 78.55 | 76.2 | 80.9 | 2 |
| 1990s | 86.65 | 84.9 | 88.4 | 2 |
| 2000s | 92.1 | 91.1 | 93.1 | 2 |
| 2010s | 96.25 | 95.6 | 96.9 | 2 |
| 2020s | 97.8 | 97.8 | 97.8 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
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 population having attained at least basic education in Malaysia?
- Population having attained at least basic education in Malaysia was 97.8 in 2020, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest population having attained at least basic education recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 97.8 in 2020.
- What is the lowest population having attained at least basic education recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3 in 1870.
- How does Malaysia rank for population having attained at least basic education?
- Malaysia ranks 47th out of 111 countries with data for 2020.
- Is population having attained at least basic education rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Population having attained at least basic education. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 31 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).