School age population, one year before the official primary entry in Malaysia
Malaysia: School age population, one year before the official primary entry was 479,706 in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
479,706
Change on year
down 7.5%
World rank
53rd
of 222 countries
All-time high
575,158
in 2021
All-time low
308,262
in 1973
Years of data
56
1970–2025
School age population, one year before the official primary entry in Malaysia, 1970–2025
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
Analysis
The most recent figure for school age population, one year before the official primary entry in Malaysia is 479,706, measured in 2025.
That represents a change of down 7.5% on the previous year and down 6.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, school age population, one year before the official primary entry in Malaysia peaked at 575,158 in 2021 and was at its lowest, 308,262, in 1973.
That places Malaysia 53rd out of 222 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 56 years of available data.
School age population, one year before the official primary entry in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 316,100 | — |
| 1971 | 313,854 | -0.7% |
| 1972 | 310,906 | -0.9% |
| 1973 | 308,262 | -0.9% |
| 1974 | 310,742 | +0.8% |
| 1975 | 315,949 | +1.7% |
| 1976 | 323,133 | +2.3% |
| 1977 | 326,460 | +1.0% |
| 1978 | 330,844 | +1.3% |
| 1979 | 339,512 | +2.6% |
| 1980 | 345,340 | +1.7% |
| 1981 | 353,643 | +2.4% |
| 1982 | 363,156 | +2.7% |
| 1983 | 371,421 | +2.3% |
| 1984 | 380,835 | +2.5% |
| 1985 | 391,874 | +2.9% |
| 1986 | 406,644 | +3.8% |
| 1987 | 421,909 | +3.8% |
| 1988 | 434,163 | +2.9% |
| 1989 | 446,232 | +2.8% |
| 1990 | 466,301 | +4.5% |
| 1991 | 486,896 | +4.4% |
| 1992 | 490,887 | +0.8% |
| 1993 | 486,023 | -1.0% |
| 1994 | 481,929 | -0.8% |
| 1995 | 483,645 | +0.4% |
| 1996 | 493,820 | +2.1% |
| 1997 | 504,882 | +2.2% |
| 1998 | 516,088 | +2.2% |
| 1999 | 530,638 | +2.8% |
| 2000 | 542,322 | +2.2% |
| 2001 | 546,181 | +0.7% |
| 2002 | 542,870 | -0.6% |
| 2003 | 538,493 | -0.8% |
| 2004 | 536,048 | -0.5% |
| 2005 | 533,627 | -0.5% |
| 2006 | 534,899 | +0.2% |
| 2007 | 536,446 | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 533,774 | -0.5% |
| 2009 | 528,434 | -1.0% |
| 2010 | 527,799 | -0.1% |
| 2011 | 533,310 | +1.0% |
| 2012 | 529,385 | -0.7% |
| 2013 | 524,390 | -0.9% |
| 2014 | 513,945 | -2.0% |
| 2015 | 511,486 | -0.5% |
| 2016 | 521,603 | +2.0% |
| 2017 | 523,733 | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 545,833 | +4.2% |
| 2019 | 553,500 | +1.4% |
| 2020 | 563,696 | +1.8% |
| 2021 | 575,158 | +2.0% |
| 2022 | 560,192 | -2.6% |
| 2023 | 542,686 | -3.1% |
| 2024 | 518,621 | -4.4% |
| 2025 | 479,706 | -7.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 319,576 | 308,262 | 339,512 | 10 |
| 1980s | 391,522 | 345,340 | 446,232 | 10 |
| 1990s | 494,111 | 466,301 | 530,638 | 10 |
| 2000s | 537,309 | 528,434 | 546,181 | 10 |
| 2010s | 528,498 | 511,486 | 553,500 | 10 |
| 2020s | 540,010 | 479,706 | 575,158 | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More education data for Malaysia
- 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)
- Secondary education, duration (years), annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is school age population, one year before the official primary entry in Malaysia?
- School age population, one year before the official primary entry in Malaysia was 479,706 in 2025, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics.
- What is the highest school age population, one year before the official primary entry recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 575,158 in 2021.
- What is the lowest school age population, one year before the official primary entry recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 308,262 in 1973.
- How does Malaysia rank for school age population, one year before the official primary entry?
- Malaysia ranks 53rd out of 222 countries with data for 2025.
- Is school age population, one year before the official primary entry rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 6.2%. 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 School age population, one year before the official primary entry age, both sexes (number). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 56 observations, free to reuse under CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO (UNESCO Institute for Statistics).
About this data
February 2026 Data Release