Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Malaysia
Malaysia: Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median was 16.5% in 2021. ▼ Falling
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Malaysia, 1984–2021
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2021, relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Malaysia stood at 16.5%.
The figure is down 3.1% on the previous year and down 11.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Malaysia peaked at 21.1% in 1997 and was at its lowest, 15.9%, in 2013.
That places Malaysia 23rd out of 120 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 14 years of available data.
Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | 20.2% | — |
| 1987 | 19.5% | -3.8% |
| 1989 | 18.6% | -4.2% |
| 1992 | 20.4% | +9.4% |
| 1995 | 20.8% | +2.0% |
| 1997 | 21.1% | +1.6% |
| 2003 | 20.0% | -5.5% |
| 2006 | 19.0% | -4.7% |
| 2008 | 20.1% | +5.4% |
| 2011 | 18.5% | -7.7% |
| 2013 | 15.9% | -14.1% |
| 2015 | 16.4% | +3.0% |
| 2018 | 17.0% | +3.9% |
| 2021 | 16.5% | -3.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 19.4% | 18.6% | 20.2% | 3 |
| 1990s | 20.8% | 20.4% | 21.1% | 3 |
| 2000s | 19.7% | 19.0% | 20.1% | 3 |
| 2010s | 17.0% | 15.9% | 18.5% | 4 |
| 2020s | 16.5% | 16.5% | 16.5% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More poverty & inequality data for Malaysia
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 2 surveys (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per person (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty 1.55 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 3,524 kg per hectare (2023)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate -1.48 % change on previous year (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 12.57 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 12.6% (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Malaysia?
- Relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median in Malaysia was 16.5% in 2021, according to World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 21.1% in 1997.
- What is the lowest relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 15.9% in 2013.
- How does Malaysia rank for relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median?
- Malaysia ranks 23rd out of 120 countries with data for 2021.
- Is relative poverty: share of population below 50% of the median rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 11.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Relative poverty: Share of population below 50% of the median. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 14 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Percentage of population living in households with an income or consumption below 50% of the median.