Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Malaysia fits inside India 9.9 times
India: 3,287,260 km² (2024) · Malaysia: 330,534 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
India’s coastline is 50% longer than Malaysia’s
India: 7,000 km (2026 edition) · Malaysia: 4,675 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
India’s highest peak towers 4,491 m above Malaysia’s
India: 8,586 m (2026 edition) · Malaysia: 4,095 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 60% of India, versus 25% of Malaysia
India: 59.9% (2024) · Malaysia: 24.8% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
India has 41 times as many people as Malaysia
India: 1.46 billion (2025) · Malaysia: 36 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
India is 4.5 times as densely populated as Malaysia
India: 492 per km² (2025) · Malaysia: 110 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Malaysia are 2.7 cm taller than in India
India: 166.5 cm (2019) · Malaysia: 169.2 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Malaysia are 1.9 cm taller than in India
India: 155.2 cm (2019) · Malaysia: 157.1 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Malaysia is 2 years older than in India
India: 28.1 years (2023) · Malaysia: 30.1 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in India have 0.4 more children on average than in Malaysia
India: 1.96 children per woman (2024) · Malaysia: 1.54 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
8.0% of people in Malaysia are 65 or older, versus 7.4% in India
India: 7.4% (2025) · Malaysia: 8% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
Malaysia hosts 26 times as many refugees per resident as India
India: 0.2 per 1,000 (2025) · Malaysia: 4.2 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
India has produced 0.1 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Malaysia none
India: 0.1 (2026) · Malaysia: 0 (2026)
How many official languages?
India has 3 official languages, Malaysia 2
India: 3 (2026) · Malaysia: 2 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
India’s economy is 8.4 times the size of Malaysia’s
India: $3.96 trillion (2025) · Malaysia: $472 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Malaysia produces 3.5 times as much per person as India
India: Int$11,748 (2025) · Malaysia: Int$41,498 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Malaysia than in India (Gini 17.7 points higher)
India: 23 (2023) · Malaysia: 40.7 (2021)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
2.6% of people in India live on less than $3 a day, versus 0% in Malaysia
India: 2.6% (2023) · Malaysia: 0% (2021)
How many people are looking for work?
India and Malaysia are practically level
India: 4.2% (2025) · Malaysia: 3.8% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
India spends 2.3% of its GDP on the military, Malaysia 1.0%
India: 2.3% (2025) · Malaysia: 1% (2025)
How much does the central government collect in tax?
Malaysia’s central government collects 12% of GDP in tax, India’s 6.9%
India: 6.9% (2022) · Malaysia: 12.4% (2024)
How expensive is it?
Malaysia’s price level (US = 100) is 1.4× India’s
India: 23% (2025) · Malaysia: 32% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Malaysia spends 5.3 times as much on health per person as India
India: $85 (2023) · Malaysia: $450 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Malaysia live 4.6 years longer than in India
India: 72.2 years (2024) · Malaysia: 76.8 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in India is 3.3 times as likely to die before turning one as in Malaysia
India: 23.3 per 1,000 (2024) · Malaysia: 7 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Malaysia has 3.2 times as many doctors per person as India
India: 0.7 per 1,000 (2020) · Malaysia: 2.3 per 1,000 (2023)
How many hospital beds are there?
Malaysia has 23% more hospital beds per person than India
India: 1.6 per 1,000 (2021) · Malaysia: 2 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in India is 3.1 times that in Malaysia
India: 15.3 per 100k (2023) · Malaysia: 5 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
24% of adults in Malaysia are obese, versus 8.0% in India
India: 8% (2024) · Malaysia: 23.6% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
23% of adults in India smoke, versus 17% in Malaysia
India: 22.6% (2024) · Malaysia: 16.9% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Malaysia rate their lives 1.47 points higher than in India
India: 4.54 (2025) · Malaysia: 6.01 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in India drink 6.5 times as much alcohol as in Malaysia
India: 5.2 litres (2023) · Malaysia: 0.8 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Malaysia has 8.5 times as much meat per person as India
India: 8.1 kg (2023) · Malaysia: 69.1 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Malaysia has 258 kcal more food per person per day than India
India: 2,669 kcal (2023) · Malaysia: 2,927 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in India put in 75 more hours a year than in Malaysia
India: 2,383 hours (2023) · Malaysia: 2,308 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Malaysia went to school 4.2 years longer than in India
India: 6.9 years (2023) · Malaysia: 11.1 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Malaysia welcomed 43 times as many tourists per resident as India (2019)
India: 0.01 (2024) · Malaysia: 0.29 (2022)
How many World Heritage sites?
India has 39 more World Heritage sites than Malaysia (45 against 6)
India: 45 (2026) · Malaysia: 6 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
India has won 41 Olympic medals, Malaysia 15
India: 41 (2026 edition) · Malaysia: 15 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
98% of people in Malaysia are online, versus 70% in India
India: 70% (2025) · Malaysia: 98% (2024)
How fast is home internet?
Home internet in Malaysia is 3 times as fast as in India
India: 91 Mbps (2026) · Malaysia: 269 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
Malaysia and India are practically level
India: 99.9% (2024) · Malaysia: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
77% of people in Malaysia live in cities, versus 36% in India
India: 36% (2025) · Malaysia: 77% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Malaysia has 140 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, India 79
India: 79 (2024) · Malaysia: 140 (2024)
How much railway is there?
India’s railway network is 41 times as long as Malaysia’s
India: 68,103 km (2021) · Malaysia: 1,655 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Malaysia fly 11 times as many passengers per resident as those from India
India: 0.12 (2023) · Malaysia: 1.3 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 58% of Malaysia, but only 24% of India
India: 24.4% (2024) · Malaysia: 57.7% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Malaysia emits 3.7 times as much CO₂ as someone in India
India: 2.2 t (2024) · Malaysia: 8.2 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
24% of India’s electricity is renewable, versus 21% in Malaysia
India: 24.1% (2025) · Malaysia: 20.7% (2025)
How clean is the air?
The air in India carries 2.9 times as much fine dust as in Malaysia
India: 44.2 µg/m³ (2024) · Malaysia: 15.3 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 3.8 times as likely to be murdered in India as in Malaysia
India: 2.8 per 100k (2022) · Malaysia: 0.7 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in India are 57% deadlier than in Malaysia
India: 25.4 per 100k (2023) · Malaysia: 16.2 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Malaysia is on average 1.5 °C warmer than India
India: 24.5°C (2016–2025 avg) · Malaysia: 26°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Malaysia gets 2.4 times as much rain as India
India: 1,268 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Malaysia: 3,081 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Between them
People, goods and passports that cross from one to the other
Quick answers
Is India bigger than Malaysia?
India is larger. Malaysia fits inside India 9.9 times.
Which has more people, India or Malaysia?
India has 41 times as many people as Malaysia (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, India or Malaysia?
People in Malaysia live 4.6 years longer than in India. Life expectancy at birth is 72.2 years in India and 76.8 in Malaysia.
Are people taller in India or Malaysia?
Men in Malaysia are 2.7 cm taller than in India (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
