Sex gap in life expectancy in Malaysia
Malaysia: Sex gap in life expectancy was 5.1 years in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
5.1 years
Change on year
down 0.8%
World rank
110th
of 236 countries
All-time high
5.49 years
in 1999
All-time low
1.17 years
in 1955
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Sex gap in life expectancy in Malaysia, 1950–2023
Source: Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
Malaysia recorded 5.1 years for sex gap in life expectancy in 2023.
The figure is down 0.8% on the previous year and up 1.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, sex gap in life expectancy in Malaysia peaked at 5.49 years in 1999 and was at its lowest, 1.17 years, in 1955.
That places Malaysia 110th out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Sex gap in life expectancy in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 1.28 years | — |
| 1951 | 1.67 years | +30.3% |
| 1952 | 1.6 years | -4.5% |
| 1953 | 1.36 years | -14.6% |
| 1954 | 1.3 years | -4.2% |
| 1955 | 1.17 years | -10.2% |
| 1956 | 1.25 years | +7.0% |
| 1957 | 1.39 years | +11.2% |
| 1958 | 1.62 years | +16.5% |
| 1959 | 1.72 years | +5.8% |
| 1960 | 1.86 years | +8.4% |
| 1961 | 1.93 years | +3.6% |
| 1962 | 1.98 years | +2.4% |
| 1963 | 2.06 years | +4.5% |
| 1964 | 2.24 years | +8.6% |
| 1965 | 2.36 years | +5.2% |
| 1966 | 2.42 years | +2.7% |
| 1967 | 2.46 years | +1.7% |
| 1968 | 2.6 years | +5.4% |
| 1969 | 2.75 years | +5.7% |
| 1970 | 2.82 years | +2.6% |
| 1971 | 2.89 years | +2.5% |
| 1972 | 2.96 years | +2.4% |
| 1973 | 3.02 years | +2.2% |
| 1974 | 3.11 years | +2.8% |
| 1975 | 3.18 years | +2.2% |
| 1976 | 3.51 years | +10.5% |
| 1977 | 3.93 years | +11.9% |
| 1978 | 4.34 years | +10.4% |
| 1979 | 4.36 years | +0.6% |
| 1980 | 4.42 years | +1.3% |
| 1981 | 4.5 years | +1.8% |
| 1982 | 4.51 years | +0.2% |
| 1983 | 4.5 years | -0.0% |
| 1984 | 4.5 years | -0.0% |
| 1985 | 4.62 years | +2.7% |
| 1986 | 4.73 years | +2.2% |
| 1987 | 4.82 years | +1.9% |
| 1988 | 4.78 years | -0.8% |
| 1989 | 4.74 years | -0.8% |
| 1990 | 4.72 years | -0.4% |
| 1991 | 4.73 years | +0.2% |
| 1992 | 4.79 years | +1.3% |
| 1993 | 4.91 years | +2.5% |
| 1994 | 5.06 years | +3.1% |
| 1995 | 5.17 years | +2.1% |
| 1996 | 5.27 years | +1.9% |
| 1997 | 5.41 years | +2.6% |
| 1998 | 5.49 years | +1.5% |
| 1999 | 5.49 years | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 5.39 years | -1.9% |
| 2001 | 5.29 years | -1.7% |
| 2002 | 5.23 years | -1.3% |
| 2003 | 5.25 years | +0.5% |
| 2004 | 5.22 years | -0.6% |
| 2005 | 5.18 years | -0.7% |
| 2006 | 5.1 years | -1.6% |
| 2007 | 5.1 years | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 5.07 years | -0.5% |
| 2009 | 5.08 years | +0.1% |
| 2010 | 5.06 years | -0.3% |
| 2011 | 5.05 years | -0.2% |
| 2012 | 5.01 years | -0.7% |
| 2013 | 5.01 years | -0.0% |
| 2014 | 5.09 years | +1.5% |
| 2015 | 5.13 years | +0.9% |
| 2016 | 5.16 years | +0.5% |
| 2017 | 5.09 years | -1.3% |
| 2018 | 5.05 years | -0.8% |
| 2019 | 5.06 years | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 5.08 years | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 5.19 years | +2.1% |
| 2022 | 5.14 years | -1.0% |
| 2023 | 5.1 years | -0.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 1.44 years | 1.17 years | 1.72 years | 10 |
| 1960s | 2.27 years | 1.86 years | 2.75 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 3.41 years | 2.82 years | 4.36 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.61 years | 4.42 years | 4.82 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.1 years | 4.72 years | 5.49 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 5.19 years | 5.07 years | 5.39 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.07 years | 5.01 years | 5.16 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 5.13 years | 5.08 years | 5.19 years | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
More health data for Malaysia
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -0.9119 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.2888 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,250 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 652 deaths (2100)
- Population ages 75-79, female, annual growth rate 7.97 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 75-79, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 75-79, female, per capita 0.0074 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 75-79, male, annual growth rate 7.84 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 75-79, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 75-79, male, per capita 0.0066 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is sex gap in life expectancy in Malaysia?
- Sex gap in life expectancy in Malaysia was 5.1 years in 2023, according to Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest sex gap in life expectancy recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 5.49 years in 1999.
- What is the lowest sex gap in life expectancy recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.17 years in 1955.
- How does Malaysia rank for sex gap in life expectancy?
- Malaysia ranks 110th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is sex gap in life expectancy rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from Human Mortality Database (2025); UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Sex gap in life expectancy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Difference in period life expectancy (females - males) at a given age.