Malaysia vs South Korea

Malaysia and South Korea compared on 10 key figures from official sources. Each value is the latest one published for that country, so the year is shown with it.

• South Korea has about 1.4 times as many people as Malaysia: 51.7 million against 36 million in 2025.
• GDP per person in South Korea ($36,227) is about 2.8 times as high as in Malaysia ($13,125) in 2025.
• The economy grew faster in Malaysia (5.2%) than in South Korea (1%), a difference of 4.2 percentage points in 2025.
• Consumer prices rose faster in South Korea (2.1%) than in Malaysia (1.4%), a difference of 0.7 percentage points in 2025.
• The unemployment rate was higher in Malaysia (3.8%) than in South Korea (2.7%), a difference of 1.1 percentage points in 2025.
• A baby born in South Korea can expect to live 6.8 years longer than one born in Malaysia: 83.6 years against 76.8 years in 2024.
• The population of South Korea is older: half of its people are over 44.5 years, against 30.1 years in Malaysia in 2023.
• A larger share of people used the internet in Malaysia (98%) than in South Korea (97.9%), a difference of 0.1 percentage points in 2024.
• CO2 emissions per person in South Korea (11.4 tonnes) are 37% higher than in Malaysia (8.3 tonnes) in 2024.
• Forest covers a larger share of the land in South Korea (64.4%) than in Malaysia (57.7%), a difference of 6.7 percentage points in 2024.