In 2023, Malaysian employees between the ages of 40 and 44 years old earned the highest average monthly salary, at ***** Malaysian ringgit. With a retirement age of just 60 years old, Malaysian workers could look forward to earning more monthly average wage starting from around 40 years old. Economic outlook Malaysia is one of the biggest and strongest economies of South-East Asia, with a relatively low unemployment rate. The average monthly salary steadily increased from ***** Malaysian ringgit in 2014 to ***** Malaysian ringgit in 2023. Employees with a university degree could expect to earn almost twice as much. Can wages keep up with the cost of living? However, when seen in the context of rising living costs, wages in Malaysia have not been able to keep up. Despite having a relatively low inflation rate, prices have still gone up. Malaysians spent more than ** percent of their income on housing and food. In May 2022, the Malaysian government increased the minimum wage to 1,500 Malaysian ringgit monthly, or 7.21 Malaysian ringgit hourly, in the hopes of easing the financial burdens of its citizens.

In 2022, the highest average monthly household income was in the Wilayah Persekutuan Putrajaya, with around ****** Malaysian ringgit. Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur, the capital city and also a federal territory, came second with around ****** Malaysian ringgit in monthly average household income.

Key information about Malaysia Monthly Earnings

• Malaysia Monthly Earnings stood at 826 USD in Sep 2025, compared with the previous figure of 814 USD in Aug 2025
• Malaysia Monthly Earnings data is updated monthly, available from Jan 2013 to Sep 2025, with an average number of 778 USD
• The data reached the an all-time high of 927 USD in Mar 2018 and a record low of 684 USD in Sep 2015

CEIC calculates Monthly Earnings from monthly Payroll and monthly Employment, and converts it into USD. The Department of Statistics provides Payroll and Employment in local currency. Federal Reserve Board average market exchange rate is used for currency conversions. Monthly Earnings cover 251 industries in Manufacturing sector. Monthly Earnings prior to January 2019 cover 155 industries out of a total 259 industries in Manufacturing sector.


Further information about Malaysia Monthly Earnings

• In the latest reports, Malaysia Population reached 34 million people in Dec 2025
• Unemployment Rate of Malaysia remained the same at 3 % in Sep 2025
• The country's Labour Force Participation Rate remained the same rate at 71 % in Sep 2025

In 2023, Wilayah Persekutuan Putrajaya had the highest average monthly salary compared to other states in Malaysia, at ***** Malaysian ringgit. By comparison, Kedah had the lowest average monthly salary at ***** Malaysian ringgit.

In 2023, the average mean monthly salary for women in Malaysia was ***** Malaysian ringgit, an increase compared to the previous year. In the same year, the difference between the average monthly salary for female employees and male employees in Malaysia was around *** Malaysian ringgit.

In 2023, the average mean monthly salary for employees in the education sector in Malaysia was ***** Malaysian ringgit. In the same year, employees working in the education sector had a higher average mean monthly salary than the national average.

Malaysia Expenditure: Compensation of Employees data was reported at 73,108.300 MYR mn in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 70,050.168 MYR mn for 2015. Malaysia Expenditure: Compensation of Employees data is updated yearly, averaging 28,521.577 MYR mn from Dec 1996 (Median) to 2016, with 21 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 73,108.300 MYR mn in 2016 and a record low of 13,195.000 MYR mn in 1997. Malaysia Expenditure: Compensation of Employees data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Malaysia – Table MY.World Bank.WDI: Government Revenue, Expenditure and Finance. Compensation of employees consists of all payments in cash, as well as in kind (such as food and housing), to employees in return for services rendered, and government contributions to social insurance schemes such as social security and pensions that provide benefits to employees.; ; International Monetary Fund, Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files.; ;