Number of children under 5 in Malaysia
Malaysia: Number of children under 5 was 2.27 million people in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
2.27 million people
Change on year
down 3.8%
World rank
56th
of 236 countries
All-time high
2.70 million people
in 2018
All-time low
992,934 people
in 1950
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Number of children under 5 in Malaysia, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
In 2023, number of children under 5 in Malaysia stood at 2.27 million people.
The figure is down 3.8% on the previous year and down 9.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of children under 5 in Malaysia peaked at 2.70 million people in 2018 and was at its lowest, 992,934 people, in 1950.
Malaysia ranks 56th of 236 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Number of children under 5 in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 992,934 people | — |
| 1951 | 1.06 million people | +6.7% |
| 1952 | 1.12 million people | +5.8% |
| 1953 | 1.18 million people | +5.2% |
| 1954 | 1.24 million people | +4.8% |
| 1955 | 1.28 million people | +3.9% |
| 1956 | 1.32 million people | +3.2% |
| 1957 | 1.37 million people | +3.2% |
| 1958 | 1.41 million people | +3.0% |
| 1959 | 1.45 million people | +2.7% |
| 1960 | 1.48 million people | +2.4% |
| 1961 | 1.51 million people | +2.1% |
| 1962 | 1.54 million people | +1.9% |
| 1963 | 1.56 million people | +1.6% |
| 1964 | 1.58 million people | +1.2% |
| 1965 | 1.59 million people | +0.7% |
| 1966 | 1.60 million people | +0.2% |
| 1967 | 1.59 million people | -0.2% |
| 1968 | 1.59 million people | -0.5% |
| 1969 | 1.58 million people | -0.3% |
| 1970 | 1.58 million people | +0.1% |
| 1971 | 1.59 million people | +0.7% |
| 1972 | 1.61 million people | +1.1% |
| 1973 | 1.64 million people | +1.5% |
| 1974 | 1.67 million people | +1.7% |
| 1975 | 1.69 million people | +1.6% |
| 1976 | 1.72 million people | +1.7% |
| 1977 | 1.75 million people | +1.8% |
| 1978 | 1.78 million people | +1.7% |
| 1979 | 1.81 million people | +1.6% |
| 1980 | 1.85 million people | +2.1% |
| 1981 | 1.89 million people | +2.6% |
| 1982 | 1.95 million people | +2.8% |
| 1983 | 2.01 million people | +3.1% |
| 1984 | 2.08 million people | +3.3% |
| 1985 | 2.15 million people | +3.5% |
| 1986 | 2.22 million people | +3.4% |
| 1987 | 2.29 million people | +3.0% |
| 1988 | 2.34 million people | +2.4% |
| 1989 | 2.38 million people | +1.5% |
| 1990 | 2.39 million people | +0.4% |
| 1991 | 2.39 million people | -0.0% |
| 1992 | 2.40 million people | +0.6% |
| 1993 | 2.44 million people | +1.5% |
| 1994 | 2.49 million people | +2.0% |
| 1995 | 2.54 million people | +2.2% |
| 1996 | 2.59 million people | +2.0% |
| 1997 | 2.63 million people | +1.6% |
| 1998 | 2.66 million people | +1.1% |
| 1999 | 2.67 million people | +0.3% |
| 2000 | 2.65 million people | -0.5% |
| 2001 | 2.64 million people | -0.6% |
| 2002 | 2.63 million people | -0.4% |
| 2003 | 2.62 million people | -0.2% |
| 2004 | 2.62 million people | -0.1% |
| 2005 | 2.62 million people | -0.1% |
| 2006 | 2.62 million people | -0.1% |
| 2007 | 2.61 million people | -0.2% |
| 2008 | 2.60 million people | -0.4% |
| 2009 | 2.58 million people | -1.0% |
| 2010 | 2.54 million people | -1.4% |
| 2011 | 2.51 million people | -1.1% |
| 2012 | 2.50 million people | -0.3% |
| 2013 | 2.52 million people | +0.6% |
| 2014 | 2.55 million people | +1.3% |
| 2015 | 2.60 million people | +1.8% |
| 2016 | 2.65 million people | +2.0% |
| 2017 | 2.69 million people | +1.6% |
| 2018 | 2.70 million people | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 2.68 million people | -0.9% |
| 2020 | 2.60 million people | -3.1% |
| 2021 | 2.47 million people | -4.7% |
| 2022 | 2.36 million people | -4.6% |
| 2023 | 2.27 million people | -3.8% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 2.27 million people is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 447,677 people, 5.1× the median. (58 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 2.27 million people is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 156,933 people, 14.5× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 1.24 million people | 992,934 people | 1.45 million people | 10 |
| 1960s | 1.56 million people | 1.48 million people | 1.60 million people | 10 |
| 1970s | 1.68 million people | 1.58 million people | 1.81 million people | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.12 million people | 1.85 million people | 2.38 million people | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.52 million people | 2.39 million people | 2.67 million people | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.62 million people | 2.58 million people | 2.65 million people | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.59 million people | 2.50 million people | 2.70 million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.43 million people | 2.27 million people | 2.60 million people | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More reference data data for Malaysia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.7102 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.5869 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 4.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.1487 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 4.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 2.38 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.64 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 3.29 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 21.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.8098 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of children under 5 in Malaysia?
- Number of children under 5 in Malaysia was 2.27 million people in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of children under 5 recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 2.70 million people in 2018.
- What is the lowest number of children under 5 recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 992,934 people in 1950.
- How does Malaysia rank for number of children under 5?
- Malaysia ranks 56th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is number of children under 5 rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.8%. 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 Number of children under 5. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total population, measured on 1 July of the year shown. This only includes people aged 0-4.