Democracy Index in Malaysia
Malaysia: Democracy Index was 7 in 2018. ▼ Falling
Democracy Index in Malaysia, 1957–2018
Source: Polity 5 (2020); Population based on various sources (2023) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Malaysia recorded 7 for democracy index in 2018. That is the highest value across all 62 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 40.0% on the previous year and up 16.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, democracy index in Malaysia peaked at 7 in 1957 and was at its lowest, 1, in 1969.
Malaysia ranks 69th of 168 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 62 years of available data.
Democracy Index in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1957 | 7 | — |
| 1958 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1961 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1962 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1966 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1967 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1968 | 7 | +0.0% |
| 1969 | 1 | -85.7% |
| 1970 | 1 | +0.0% |
| 1971 | 4 | +300.0% |
| 1972 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1973 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1974 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1975 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1976 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1977 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1978 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1980 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1981 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1985 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1986 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1988 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1989 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 4 | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 3 | -25.0% |
| 1997 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1998 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 3 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 6 | +100.0% |
| 2009 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 6 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 5 | -16.7% |
| 2015 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 7 | +40.0% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 7 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 7, 1.0× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 7 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 7.5, 93% of the median. (20 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 7 | 7 | 7 | 3 |
| 1960s | 6.4 | 1 | 7 | 10 |
| 1970s | 3.7 | 1 | 4 | 10 |
| 1980s | 4 | 4 | 4 | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.6 | 3 | 4 | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.6 | 3 | 6 | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.67 | 5 | 7 | 9 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
- 69 Armenia 7 compare
- 69 Benin 7 compare
- 69 Bhutan 7 compare
- 69 Bolivia 7 compare
- 69 Colombia 7 compare
- 69 Dominican Republic 7 compare
- 69 Georgia 7 compare
- 69 Guyana 7 compare
- 69 Honduras 7 compare
- 69 Liberia 7 compare
- 69 Nepal 7 compare
- 69 Nigeria 7 compare
- 69 Pakistan 7 compare
- 69 Senegal 7 compare
- 69 Sierra Leone 7 compare
- 69 Tunisia 7 compare
More social development data for Malaysia
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 150,164 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 2,477 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 4 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 4 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0001 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 2,477 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0042 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is democracy index in Malaysia?
- Democracy index in Malaysia was 7 in 2018, according to Polity 5 (2020); Population based on various sources (2023) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest democracy index recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 7 in 1957.
- What is the lowest democracy index recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 in 1969.
- How does Malaysia rank for democracy index?
- Malaysia ranks 69th out of 168 countries with data for 2018.
- Is democracy index rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 16.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from Polity 5 (2020); Population based on various sources (2023) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Democracy Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 62 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
It combines information on the extent to which open, multi-party, and competitive elections choose a chief executive who faces comprehensive institutional constraints, and political participation is competitive. It ranges from -10 to 10 (fully democratic).