Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality in Malaysia
Malaysia: Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality was 12.6% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality in Malaysia, 1980–2023
Source: UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Malaysia recorded 12.6% for tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality in 2023.
The figure is up 8.0% on the previous year and down 16.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality in Malaysia peaked at 21.5% in 1980 and was at its lowest, 10.9%, in 2020.
Malaysia ranks 139th of 187 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 43 years of available data.
Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 21.5% | — |
| 1981 | 20.8% | -3.4% |
| 1982 | 19.3% | -7.0% |
| 1983 | 21.0% | +8.7% |
| 1984 | 19.7% | -6.3% |
| 1986 | 19.5% | -1.1% |
| 1987 | 16.4% | -15.8% |
| 1988 | 16.8% | +2.3% |
| 1989 | 17.1% | +1.7% |
| 1990 | 18.8% | +10.4% |
| 1991 | 19.8% | +4.9% |
| 1992 | 18.4% | -6.9% |
| 1993 | 17.7% | -3.7% |
| 1994 | 18.3% | +3.4% |
| 1995 | 17.9% | -2.5% |
| 1996 | 17.8% | -0.5% |
| 1997 | 18.1% | +1.9% |
| 1998 | 15.4% | -15.3% |
| 1999 | 12.9% | -15.8% |
| 2000 | 12.5% | -3.0% |
| 2001 | 16.3% | +30.2% |
| 2002 | 16.0% | -2.0% |
| 2003 | 14.2% | -11.2% |
| 2004 | 14.0% | -1.9% |
| 2005 | 14.2% | +1.4% |
| 2006 | 13.9% | -2.1% |
| 2007 | 13.7% | -1.5% |
| 2008 | 14.0% | +2.5% |
| 2009 | 14.3% | +1.9% |
| 2010 | 13.1% | -7.8% |
| 2011 | 14.6% | +11.0% |
| 2012 | 15.4% | +5.5% |
| 2013 | 15.1% | -1.9% |
| 2014 | 14.6% | -3.1% |
| 2015 | 14.1% | -3.9% |
| 2016 | 13.6% | -3.6% |
| 2017 | 12.9% | -4.5% |
| 2018 | 12.0% | -7.1% |
| 2019 | 11.9% | -0.7% |
| 2020 | 10.9% | -8.8% |
| 2021 | 11.2% | +3.0% |
| 2022 | 11.6% | +3.8% |
| 2023 | 12.6% | +8.0% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 12.6% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 21.9%, 57% of the median. (54 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 12.6% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 18.1%, 69% of the median. (30 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 19.1% | 16.4% | 21.5% | 9 |
| 1990s | 17.5% | 12.9% | 19.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 14.3% | 12.5% | 16.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 13.7% | 11.9% | 15.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 11.6% | 10.9% | 12.6% | 4 |
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 revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, annual growth rate 8.03 % change on previous year (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality in Malaysia?
- Tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality in Malaysia was 12.6% in 2023, according to UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 21.5% in 1980.
- What is the lowest tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.9% in 2020.
- How does Malaysia rank for tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality?
- Malaysia ranks 139th out of 187 countries with data for 2023.
- Is tax revenue as share of gdp vs. income inequality rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 16.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from UNU-WIDER Government Revenue Dataset (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Taxes include direct and indirect taxes as well as social contributions. The Gini coefficient measures inequality on a scale from 0 to 1. Higher values indicate higher inequality.