Homicides in Malaysia
Malaysia: Homicides was 258 homicides in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
258 homicides
Change on year
up 7.5%
World rank
75th
of 179 countries
All-time high
652 homicides
in 2007
All-time low
240 homicides
in 2022
Years of data
34
1990–2023
Homicides in Malaysia, 1990–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in homicides.
Analysis
In 2023, homicides in Malaysia stood at 258 homicides.
That represents a change of up 7.5% on the previous year and down 58.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, homicides in Malaysia peaked at 652 homicides in 2007 and was at its lowest, 240 homicides, in 2022.
That places Malaysia 75th out of 179 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 34 years of available data.
Homicides in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | homicides | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 313 homicides | — |
| 1991 | 384 homicides | +22.7% |
| 1992 | 366 homicides | -4.7% |
| 1993 | 360 homicides | -1.6% |
| 1994 | 336 homicides | -6.7% |
| 1995 | 396 homicides | +17.9% |
| 1996 | 447 homicides | +12.9% |
| 1997 | 540 homicides | +20.8% |
| 1998 | 629 homicides | +16.5% |
| 1999 | 588 homicides | -6.5% |
| 2000 | 551 homicides | -6.3% |
| 2001 | 517 homicides | -6.2% |
| 2002 | 565 homicides | +9.3% |
| 2003 | 565 homicides | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 497 homicides | -12.0% |
| 2005 | 604 homicides | +21.5% |
| 2006 | 588 homicides | -2.6% |
| 2007 | 652 homicides | +10.9% |
| 2008 | 597 homicides | -8.4% |
| 2009 | 561 homicides | -6.0% |
| 2010 | 540 homicides | -3.7% |
| 2011 | 530 homicides | -1.9% |
| 2012 | 602 homicides | +13.6% |
| 2013 | 627 homicides | +4.2% |
| 2014 | 510 homicides | -18.7% |
| 2015 | 498 homicides | -2.4% |
| 2016 | 456 homicides | -8.4% |
| 2017 | 379 homicides | -16.9% |
| 2018 | 323 homicides | -14.8% |
| 2019 | 310 homicides | -4.0% |
| 2020 | 253 homicides | -18.4% |
| 2021 | 243 homicides | -4.0% |
| 2022 | 240 homicides | -1.2% |
| 2023 | 258 homicides | +7.5% |
Malaysia compared with similar countries
- Malaysia's 258 homicides is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 241.5 homicides, 1.1× the median. (52 countries reporting)
- Malaysia's 258 homicides is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 75 homicides, 3.4× the median. (27 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 435.9 homicides | 313 homicides | 629 homicides | 10 |
| 2000s | 569.7 homicides | 497 homicides | 652 homicides | 10 |
| 2010s | 477.5 homicides | 310 homicides | 627 homicides | 10 |
| 2020s | 248.5 homicides | 240 homicides | 258 homicides | 4 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
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 homicides in Malaysia?
- Homicides in Malaysia was 258 homicides in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest homicides recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 652 homicides in 2007.
- What is the lowest homicides recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 240 homicides in 2022.
- How does Malaysia rank for homicides?
- Malaysia ranks 75th out of 179 countries with data for 2023.
- Is homicides rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 58.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Homicides. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Number of intentional homicides.