Population by labor force status in Malaysia
Malaysia: Population by labor force status was 7.67 million people in 2025. ▲ Rising
Population by labor force status in Malaysia, 1991–2025
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
Malaysia recorded 7.67 million people for population by labor force status in 2025.
The figure is down 1.0% on the previous year and down 4.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population by labor force status in Malaysia peaked at 8.19 million people in 2018 and was at its lowest, 6.77 million people, in 1991.
Malaysia ranks 53rd of 186 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 7.27 million people | 6.77 million people | 7.77 million people | 9 |
| 2000s | 8.04 million people | 7.85 million people | 8.11 million people | 10 |
| 2010s | 8.07 million people | 7.99 million people | 8.19 million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.88 million people | 7.67 million people | 8.12 million people | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More work & labour data for Malaysia
- Legislation on sexual harassment in employment 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Criminal sanctions or compensation for workplace sexual harassment 0 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Women can take the same jobs as men 1 (1=yes; 0=no) (2023)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15+) 66.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15+) 79.2% (2025)
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) 65.2% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 51.6% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, total (% of total population ages 15-6 70.7% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, male (% of male population ages 15-64) 83.1% (2025)
- Labor force participation rate, female (% of female population ages 15 56.7% (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is population by labor force status in Malaysia?
- Population by labor force status in Malaysia was 7.67 million people in 2025, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest population by labor force status recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 8.19 million people in 2018.
- What is the lowest population by labor force status recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.77 million people in 1991.
- How does Malaysia rank for population by labor force status?
- Malaysia ranks 53rd out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
- Is population by labor force status rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 4.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Population by labor force status. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Population below working age (under 15 years old).