Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Malaysia fits inside Indonesia 5.8 times
Indonesia: 1,916,910 km² (2024) · Malaysia: 330,534 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
Indonesia’s coastline is 12 times as long as Malaysia’s
Indonesia: 54,716 km (2026 edition) · Malaysia: 4,675 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Indonesia’s highest peak towers 789 m above Malaysia’s
Indonesia: 4,884 m (2026 edition) · Malaysia: 4,095 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 29% of Indonesia, versus 25% of Malaysia
Indonesia: 28.9% (2024) · Malaysia: 24.8% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Indonesia has 7.9 times as many people as Malaysia
Indonesia: 286 million (2025) · Malaysia: 36 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Indonesia is 38% more densely populated than Malaysia
Indonesia: 151 per km² (2025) · Malaysia: 110 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Malaysia are 2.9 cm taller than in Indonesia
Indonesia: 166.3 cm (2019) · Malaysia: 169.2 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Malaysia are 2.7 cm taller than in Indonesia
Indonesia: 154.4 cm (2019) · Malaysia: 157.1 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Malaysia is 0.23 years older than in Indonesia
Indonesia: 29.8 years (2023) · Malaysia: 30.1 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Indonesia have 0.6 more children on average than in Malaysia
Indonesia: 2.12 children per woman (2024) · Malaysia: 1.54 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
Malaysia and Indonesia are practically level
Indonesia: 7.5% (2025) · Malaysia: 8% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
Malaysia hosts 162 times as many refugees per resident as Indonesia
Indonesia: 0.026 per 1,000 (2025) · Malaysia: 4.2 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Indonesia has produced 0.0 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Malaysia none
Indonesia: 0.035 (2026) · Malaysia: 0 (2026)
How many official languages?
Malaysia has 2 official languages, Indonesia 1
Indonesia: 1 (2026) · Malaysia: 2 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Indonesia’s economy is 3.1 times the size of Malaysia’s
Indonesia: $1.45 trillion (2025) · Malaysia: $472 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Malaysia produces 2.3 times as much per person as Indonesia
Indonesia: Int$17,660 (2025) · Malaysia: Int$41,498 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Malaysia than in Indonesia (Gini 6.3 points higher)
Indonesia: 34.4 (2025) · Malaysia: 40.7 (2021)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
3.7% of people in Indonesia live on less than $3 a day, versus 0% in Malaysia
Indonesia: 3.7% (2025) · Malaysia: 0% (2021)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 3.8% in Malaysia, versus 3.2% in Indonesia
Indonesia: 3.2% (2025) · Malaysia: 3.8% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Indonesia and Malaysia are practically level
Indonesia: 1% (2025) · Malaysia: 1% (2025)
How much does the central government collect in tax?
Indonesia: no data · Malaysia: 12.4% (2024)
How expensive is it?
Malaysia’s price level (US = 100) is 1.1× Indonesia’s
Indonesia: 29% (2025) · Malaysia: 32% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Malaysia spends 3.4 times as much on health per person as Indonesia
Indonesia: $132 (2023) · Malaysia: $450 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Malaysia live 5.5 years longer than in Indonesia
Indonesia: 71.3 years (2024) · Malaysia: 76.8 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Indonesia is 2.2 times as likely to die before turning one as in Malaysia
Indonesia: 15.2 per 1,000 (2024) · Malaysia: 7 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Malaysia has 4.5 times as many doctors per person as Indonesia
Indonesia: 0.5 per 1,000 (2023) · Malaysia: 2.3 per 1,000 (2023)
How many hospital beds are there?
Malaysia has 43% more hospital beds per person than Indonesia
Indonesia: 1.4 per 1,000 (2023) · Malaysia: 2 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in Malaysia is 2.3 times that in Indonesia
Indonesia: 2.2 per 100k (2023) · Malaysia: 5 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
24% of adults in Malaysia are obese, versus 12% in Indonesia
Indonesia: 12% (2024) · Malaysia: 23.6% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
31% of adults in Indonesia smoke, versus 17% in Malaysia
Indonesia: 31% (2024) · Malaysia: 16.9% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Malaysia rate their lives 0.39 points higher than in Indonesia
Indonesia: 5.62 (2025) · Malaysia: 6.01 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Malaysia drink 8 times as much alcohol as in Indonesia
Indonesia: 0.1 litres (2023) · Malaysia: 0.8 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Malaysia has 3.5 times as much meat per person as Indonesia
Indonesia: 20 kg (2023) · Malaysia: 69.1 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Malaysia has 26 kcal more food per person per day than Indonesia
Indonesia: 2,900 kcal (2023) · Malaysia: 2,927 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in Malaysia put in 349 more hours a year than in Indonesia
Indonesia: 1,958 hours (2023) · Malaysia: 2,308 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Malaysia went to school 2.4 years longer than in Indonesia
Indonesia: 8.7 years (2023) · Malaysia: 11.1 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Malaysia welcomed 6 times as many tourists per resident as Indonesia (2019)
Indonesia: 0.05 (2024) · Malaysia: 0.29 (2022)
How many World Heritage sites?
Indonesia has 4 more World Heritage sites than Malaysia (10 against 6)
Indonesia: 10 (2026) · Malaysia: 6 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
Indonesia has won 40 Olympic medals, Malaysia 15
Indonesia: 40 (2026 edition) · Malaysia: 15 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
98% of people in Malaysia are online, versus 73% in Indonesia
Indonesia: 73% (2024) · Malaysia: 98% (2024)
How fast is home internet?
Home internet in Malaysia is 3.3 times as fast as in Indonesia
Indonesia: 82 Mbps (2026) · Malaysia: 269 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
Malaysia and Indonesia are practically level
Indonesia: 99.9% (2024) · Malaysia: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
77% of people in Malaysia live in cities, versus 59% in Indonesia
Indonesia: 59% (2025) · Malaysia: 77% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Malaysia has 140 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Indonesia 123
Indonesia: 123 (2024) · Malaysia: 140 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Indonesia’s railway network is 3.3 times as long as Malaysia’s
Indonesia: 5,483 km (2019) · Malaysia: 1,655 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Malaysia fly 3.8 times as many passengers per resident as those from Indonesia
Indonesia: 0.34 (2023) · Malaysia: 1.3 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 58% of Malaysia, but only 51% of Indonesia
Indonesia: 50.7% (2024) · Malaysia: 57.7% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Malaysia emits 2.8 times as much CO₂ as someone in Indonesia
Indonesia: 2.9 t (2024) · Malaysia: 8.2 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
21% of Malaysia’s electricity is renewable, versus 18% in Indonesia
Indonesia: 18.1% (2024) · Malaysia: 20.7% (2025)
How clean is the air?
The air in Indonesia carries 21% more fine dust than in Malaysia
Indonesia: 18.5 µg/m³ (2024) · Malaysia: 15.3 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 2.4 times as likely to be murdered in Malaysia as in Indonesia
Indonesia: 0.3 per 100k (2022) · Malaysia: 0.7 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Indonesia are 7% deadlier than in Malaysia
Indonesia: 17.4 per 100k (2023) · Malaysia: 16.2 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Malaysia is on average 0.4 °C warmer than Indonesia
Indonesia: 25.6°C (2016–2025 avg) · Malaysia: 26°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Indonesia gets 12% more rain than Malaysia
Indonesia: 3,437 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 Indonesia bigger than Malaysia?
Indonesia is larger. Malaysia fits inside Indonesia 5.8 times.
Which has more people, Indonesia or Malaysia?
Indonesia has 7.9 times as many people as Malaysia (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Indonesia or Malaysia?
People in Malaysia live 5.5 years longer than in Indonesia. Life expectancy at birth is 71.3 years in Indonesia and 76.8 in Malaysia.
Are people taller in Indonesia or Malaysia?
Men in Malaysia are 2.9 cm taller than in Indonesia (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
