World Factbook
Malaysia
Last updated: 2026-03-28 (today)
Area
land
328,657 sq km
water
1,190 sq km
total
329,847 sq km
Climate
tropical; annual southwest (April to October) and northeast (October to February) monsoons
Terrain
coastal plains rising to hills and mountains
Land use
other
16% (2023 est.)
forest
57.8% (2023 est.)
agricultural land
26.1% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: arable land
arable land: 2.4% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent crops
permanent crops: 22.7% (2023 est.)
agricultural land: permanent pasture
permanent pasture: 0.9% (2023 est.)
Location
Southeastern Asia, peninsula bordering Thailand and northern one-third of the island of Borneo, bordering Indonesia, Brunei, and the South China Sea, south of Vietnam
Coastline
4,675 km (Peninsular Malaysia 2,068 km; East Malaysia 2,607 km)
Elevation
lowest point
Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point
Gunung Kinabalu 4,095 m
mean elevation
419 m
Irrigated land
4,420 sq km (2022)
Map references
Southeast Asia
Land boundaries
total
2,742 km
border countries
Brunei 266 km; Indonesia 1,881 km; Thailand 595 km
Maritime claims
territorial sea
12 nm
continental shelf
200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation; specified boundary in the South China Sea
exclusive economic zone
200 nm
Natural hazards
flooding; landslides; forest fires
Geography - note
strategic location along Strait of Malacca and southern South China Sea
Natural resources
tin, petroleum, timber, copper, iron ore, natural gas, bauxite
Area - comparative
slightly larger than New Mexico
Geographic coordinates
2 30 N, 112 30 E
Population distribution
a highly uneven distribution, with over 80% of the population residing on the Malay Peninsula