Brunei vs Malaysia
Brunei vs Malaysia: Adult literacy
Adult literacy: 96.1% in Brunei in 2011 and 95.8% in Malaysia in 2022, by UNESCO estimates. In 1991 the value was higher in Brunei, by 4.9 percentage points, or 1.06 times that in Malaysia.
% of adults · UNESCO
What the numbers say
- Brunei has been higher in every year both have figures for since 1991.
- The world as a whole: 75.1% in 1991.
Every year
% of adults · UNESCO
| Year | Brunei | Malaysia | World |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | – | – | 87.7 |
| 2023 | – | – | 87.6 |
| 2022 | – | 95.8 | 87.4 |
| 2021 | – | – | 87.2 |
| 2020 | – | – | 87 |
| 2019 | – | 95 | 86.8 |
| 2018 | – | 94.9 | 86.8 |
| 2017 | – | 95.1 | 86.5 |
| 2016 | – | 94.9 | 86.3 |
| 2015 | – | – | 86 |
| 2014 | – | – | 85.6 |
| 2013 | – | – | 85.2 |
| 2012 | – | – | 84.9 |
| 2011 | 96.1 | – | 84.7 |
| 2010 | – | 93.1 | 84.4 |
| 2009 | – | – | 83.8 |
| 2008 | – | – | 83.5 |
| 2007 | – | – | 83.1 |
| 2006 | – | – | 82.5 |
| 2005 | – | – | 82.6 |
| 2004 | – | – | 82.6 |
| 2003 | – | – | 82.2 |
| 2002 | – | – | 81.7 |
| 2001 | 92.7 | – | 81.4 |
| 2000 | – | 88.7 | 81.1 |
| 1999 | – | – | 80.9 |
| 1998 | – | – | 80.5 |
| 1997 | – | – | 79.3 |
| 1996 | – | – | 77.3 |
| 1995 | – | – | 76.9 |
| 1994 | – | – | 76.4 |
| 1993 | – | – | 76 |
| 1992 | – | – | 75.5 |
| 1991 | 87.8 | 82.9 | 75.1 |
| 1990 | – | – | 74.6 |
| 1989 | – | – | 74.1 |
| 1988 | – | – | 73.6 |
| 1987 | – | – | 71.9 |
| 1986 | – | – | 71.3 |
| 1985 | – | – | 70.7 |
| 1984 | – | – | 70.2 |
| 1983 | – | – | 69.5 |
| 1982 | – | – | 68.9 |
| 1981 | 77.7 | – | 68.4 |
| 1980 | – | 69.5 | 67.8 |
| 1979 | – | – | 67.2 |
| 1978 | – | – | 66.5 |
| 1977 | – | – | 65.9 |
| 1976 | – | – | 65.6 |
| 1975 | – | – | 65.4 |
Each country on its own
Good to know
- The share of people aged 15 and over who can read and write a short, simple statement about their everyday life.
- Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics, via the World Bank.
- The faint line is the world as a whole, as the same source counts it.
How the layers work, where their data comes from and what they can’t tell you: Countries through time
Brunei vs Malaysia
Health
- Life expectancyBrunei: 75.3 years in 2023Malaysia: 76.7 years in 2023
- Child mortalityBrunei: 1 per 100 live births in 2024Malaysia: 0.8 per 100 live births in 2024
- Infant mortalityBrunei: 8.1 per 1,000 live births in 2023Malaysia: 6.4 per 1,000 live births in 2023
- DepressionBrunei: 2.56% in 2017Malaysia: 3.52% in 2017
- Suicide rateBrunei: 6.2 per 100,000 people in 2017Malaysia: 7.8 per 100,000 people in 2017
People
- PopulationBrunei: 458,900 people in 2023Malaysia: 35.1 million people in 2023
- Population growthBrunei: 0.84% a year in 2023Malaysia: 1.24% a year in 2023
- Fertility rateBrunei: 1.75 births per woman in 2023Malaysia: 1.55 births per woman in 2023
- Urban populationBrunei: 75% in 2025Malaysia: 77.4% in 2025
- Median ageBrunei: 31.8 years in 2023Malaysia: 30.1 years in 2023
- People aged 65 and overBrunei: 6.5% in 2023Malaysia: 7.5% in 2023
- Net migration rateBrunei: 0 per 1,000 people in 2023Malaysia: 5.2 per 1,000 people in 2023
Economy
Education
Conflict
Military
- Military spendingBrunei: 3.65% of GDP in 2024Malaysia: 1.04% of GDP in 2025
- Military spending in US dollarsBrunei: $560M in 2024Malaysia: $4.55B in 2025
- Military spending per personBrunei: $1,216 in 2024Malaysia: $138 in 2025
- Military share of state spendingBrunei: 12.2% of government spending in 2024Malaysia: 4.4% of government spending in 2025
- Armed forces personnelBrunei: 8,000 people in 2020Malaysia: 136,000 people in 2020
- National powerBrunei: 0.02% of world capability in 2022Malaysia: 0.46% of world capability in 2022
- Armed forces, share of workersBrunei: 3.57% of the labour force in 2020Malaysia: 0.81% of the labour force in 2020
- Arms importsBrunei: 28 million TIV in 2024Malaysia: 7 million TIV in 2024
- Arms exportsBrunei: 12 million TIV in 2016Malaysia: 20 million TIV in 2024