Annual working hours per worker in Malaysia

Malaysia: Annual working hours per worker was 2,308 hours per worker in 2023. ▬ Flat

Latest (2023)
2,308 hours per worker
Change on year
up 0.7%
World rank
18th
of 130 countries
All-time high
2,489 hours per worker
in 2005
All-time low
2,118 hours per worker
in 2020
Years of data
54
1970–2023

Annual working hours per worker in Malaysia, 1970–2023

05001.0k1.5k2.0k2.5k197019962023

Source: Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025); Huberman and Minns (2005) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in hours per worker.

Analysis

In 2023, annual working hours per worker in Malaysia stood at 2,308 hours per worker.

That represents a change of up 0.7% on the previous year and down 1.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, annual working hours per worker in Malaysia peaked at 2,489 hours per worker in 2005 and was at its lowest, 2,118 hours per worker, in 2020.

Malaysia ranks 18th of 130 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 2,407 hours per worker 2,403 hours per worker 2,410 hours per worker 10
1980s 2,411 hours per worker 2,409 hours per worker 2,413 hours per worker 10
1990s 2,424 hours per worker 2,415 hours per worker 2,427 hours per worker 10
2000s 2,441 hours per worker 2,414 hours per worker 2,489 hours per worker 10
2010s 2,352 hours per worker 2,316 hours per worker 2,402 hours per worker 10
2020s 2,233 hours per worker 2,118 hours per worker 2,308 hours per worker 4

Countries ranked near Malaysia

  1. 15 China 2,328 hours per worker compare
  2. 16 Kuwait 2,318 hours per worker compare
  3. 17 Zimbabwe 2,311 hours per worker compare
  4. 19 Tunisia 2,288 hours per worker compare
  5. 20 Singapore 2,283 hours per worker compare
  6. 21 Oman 2,266 hours per worker compare

See the full ranking of 130 places →

More work & labour data for Malaysia

All data for Malaysia →

Frequently asked questions

What is annual working hours per worker in Malaysia?
Annual working hours per worker in Malaysia was 2,308 hours per worker in 2023, according to Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025); Huberman and Minns (2005) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest annual working hours per worker recorded in Malaysia?
The highest recorded value was 2,489 hours per worker in 2005.
What is the lowest annual working hours per worker recorded in Malaysia?
The lowest recorded value was 2,118 hours per worker in 2020.
How does Malaysia rank for annual working hours per worker?
Malaysia ranks 18th out of 130 countries with data for 2023.
Is annual working hours per worker rising or falling in Malaysia?
Over the last ten years it is down 1.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this Malaysia data come from?
The figures come from Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025); Huberman and Minns (2005) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Annual working hours per worker. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 54 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Annual working hours per worker
Unit
hours per worker
Source
Feenstra et al. - Penn World Table (2025); Huberman and Minns (2005) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
130 places, 5,063 data points, 1870–2023
Last refreshed

Average working hours per worker in a given year.