Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Malaysia
Malaysia: Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates was 3.9% in 2022. ▼ Falling
Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Malaysia, 1970–2022
Source: Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2022, unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Malaysia stood at 3.9%.
The figure is down 15.2% on the previous year and up 28.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Malaysia peaked at 7.4% in 1986 and was at its lowest, 0.5%, in 1991.
Malaysia ranks 126th of 185 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 41 years of available data.
Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 5.1% | — |
| 1980 | 1.7% | -67.7% |
| 1982 | 3.4% | +104.7% |
| 1983 | 3.8% | +11.8% |
| 1984 | 5.0% | +32.8% |
| 1985 | 5.6% | +11.4% |
| 1986 | 7.4% | +32.0% |
| 1987 | 7.3% | -1.4% |
| 1988 | 6.9% | -5.1% |
| 1989 | 5.7% | -17.5% |
| 1990 | 4.5% | -21.4% |
| 1991 | 0.5% | -89.3% |
| 1992 | 3.7% | +670.3% |
| 1993 | 4.1% | +11.0% |
| 1995 | 3.1% | -23.5% |
| 1996 | 2.5% | -20.0% |
| 1997 | 2.4% | -2.8% |
| 1998 | 3.2% | +30.7% |
| 1999 | 3.4% | +7.3% |
| 2000 | 3.0% | -12.5% |
| 2001 | 3.5% | +17.6% |
| 2002 | 3.5% | -1.5% |
| 2003 | 3.6% | +3.9% |
| 2004 | 3.5% | -1.9% |
| 2005 | 3.5% | -0.3% |
| 2007 | 3.2% | -8.7% |
| 2008 | 3.3% | +3.5% |
| 2009 | 3.7% | +10.6% |
| 2010 | 3.3% | -12.0% |
| 2011 | 3.1% | -6.1% |
| 2012 | 3.0% | -0.7% |
| 2013 | 3.1% | +2.6% |
| 2014 | 2.9% | -7.4% |
| 2015 | 3.1% | +7.5% |
| 2016 | 3.4% | +9.7% |
| 2017 | 3.4% | -1.2% |
| 2018 | 3.3% | -1.8% |
| 2019 | 3.3% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 4.5% | +36.4% |
| 2021 | 4.6% | +2.2% |
| 2022 | 3.9% | -15.2% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 3.9% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 5.8%, 67% of the median. (52 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 3.9% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 3.5%, 1.1× the median. (34 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Malaysia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | +670.3% | 0.5% | 3.7% |
| 1982 | +104.7% | 1.7% | 3.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.1% | 5.1% | 5.1% | 1 |
| 1980s | 5.2% | 1.7% | 7.4% | 9 |
| 1990s | 3.1% | 0.5% | 4.5% | 9 |
| 2000s | 3.4% | 3.0% | 3.7% | 9 |
| 2010s | 3.2% | 2.9% | 3.4% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.3% | 3.9% | 4.6% | 3 |
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 unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Malaysia?
- Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates in Malaysia was 3.9% in 2022, according to Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 7.4% in 1986.
- What is the lowest unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5% in 1991.
- How does Malaysia rank for unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates?
- Malaysia ranks 126th out of 185 countries with data for 2022.
- Is unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 28.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from Labour Force Statistics, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Unemployment rates: modeled vs. national estimates. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 41 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of the labor force without work, but actively looking for a job and available to start soon. Figures refer to national estimates and may not be fully comparable across countries.