Japan vs Malaysia

Japan vs Malaysia: Government debt

Government debt: 213.6% of GDP in Japan in 2024 and 70.5% of GDP in Malaysia in 2025, by IMF estimates. In 2024 the value was higher in Japan, by 143.8 percentage points, or 3.06 times that in Malaysia.

Watch it change on the map

% of GDP · IMF

Japan vs Malaysia: Government debtGovernment debt: 213.6% of GDP in Japan in 2024 and 70.5% of GDP in Malaysia in 2025, by IMF estimates. In 2024 the value was higher in Japan, by 143.8 percentage points, or 3.06 times that in Malaysia.
JapanMalaysiaIMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026)

What the numbers say

  • Japan has been higher since 1993, when it overtook Malaysia.
  • The IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026) puts Japan at 188.9% of GDP and Malaysia at 65.1% of GDP in 2031.

Every year

% of GDP · IMF

YearJapanMalaysia
2025204.870.5
2024213.669.8
2023220.169.7
202222865.5
2021222.669.2
2020228.867.7
2019206.357.1
2018203.755.7
2017203.154.4
2016202.155.8
2015200.157
2014203.655.4
2013201.255.7
2012197.153.8
2011190.651.9
2010178.651.2
2009172.950.4
2008153.639.4
2007150.439.4
2006152.139.7
2005153.440.8
2004148.842
2003140.241.4
2002134.639.5
2001126.838.1
2000118.532.5
1999113.534.4
1998101.633.6
199791.329.6
199685.332.8
199580.738.2
199473.343.7
199363.251.1
199257.959.1
199154.167.3
199054.874.1
198956.9–
198862.4–
198765.8–
198664.2–
198559.2–
198456.9–
198355.1–
198250.1–
198145.8–
198041.4–
  • 12.3Projected
IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026) · 2026–2031
YearJapanMalaysia
2026199.469.2
2027196.468.8
2028193.867.7
2029191.566.7
2030190.165.9
2031188.965.1

Each country on its own

Good to know

  • What the government owes, as a share of the economy’s yearly output.
  • Source: IMF, World Economic Outlook, October 2026.
  • The dashed line is the IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026), a scenario rather than a forecast.
  • Ranks count the 149 countries with a value in 2025, highest first.

How the layers work, where their data comes from and what they can’t tell you: Countries through time

Japan vs Malaysia

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