Quality of life comparison

compared to

If you lived in Indonesia instead of Malaysia, you would:

Health

be 55.8% less likely to be obese

In Malaysia, 15.6% of adults are obese as of 2016. In Indonesia, that number is 6.9% of people as of 2016.

live 3.0 years less

In Malaysia, the average life expectancy is 76 years (74 years for men, 78 years for women) as of 2022. In Indonesia, that number is 73 years (71 years for men, 75 years for women) as of 2022.

Economy

be 11.4% less likely to be unemployed

In Malaysia, 3.9% of adults are unemployed as of 2023. In Indonesia, that number is 3.4% as of 2023.

make 58.0% less money

Malaysia has a GDP per capita of $33,600 as of 2023, while in Indonesia, the GDP per capita is $14,100 as of 2023.

be 51.6% more likely to live below the poverty line

In Malaysia, 6.2% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Indonesia, however, that number is 9.4% as of 2023.

Life

be 8.2 times more likely to die during childbirth

In Malaysia, approximately 21.0 women per 100,000 births die during labor as of 2020. In Indonesia, 173.0 women do as of 2020.

be 3.0 times more likely to die during infancy

In Malaysia, approximately 6.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2022. In Indonesia, on the other hand, 19.7 children do as of 2022.

Basic Needs

be 36.1% less likely to have internet access

In Malaysia, approximately 97.0% of the population has internet access as of 2021. In Indonesia, about 62.0% do as of 2021.

Expenditures

spend 10.3% less on education

Malaysia spends 3.9% of its total GDP on education as of 2020. Indonesia spends 3.5% of total GDP on education as of 2020.

spend 17.1% less on healthcare

Malaysia spends 4.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2020. In Indonesia, that number is 3.4% of GDP as of 2020.

Geography

see 11.7 times more coastline

Malaysia has a total of 4,675 km of coastline. In Indonesia, that number is 54,716 km.

The statistics above were calculated using the following data sources: The World Factbook.

Indonesia: At a glance

Indonesia is a sovereign country in East/Southeast Asia, with a total land area of approximately 1,811,569 sq km. The Dutch began to colonize Indonesia in the early 17th century; Japan occupied the islands from 1942 to 1945. Indonesia declared its independence shortly before Japan's surrender, but it required four years of sometimes brutal fighting, intermittent negotiations, and UN mediation before the Netherlands agreed to transfer sovereignty in 1949. A period of sometimes unruly parliamentary democracy ended in 1957 when President SOEKARNO declared martial law and instituted "Guided Democracy." After an abortive coup in 1965 by alleged communist sympathizers, SOEKARNO was gradually eased from power. From 1967 until 1988, President SUHARTO ruled Indonesia with his "New Order" government. After rioting toppled Suharto in 1998, free and fair legislative elections took place in 1999. Indonesia is now the world's third most populous democracy, the world's largest archipelagic state, and the world's largest Muslim-majority nation. Current issues include: alleviating poverty, improving education, preventing terrorism, consolidating democracy after four decades of authoritarianism, implementing economic and financial reforms, stemming corruption, reforming the criminal justice system, holding the military and police accountable for human rights violations, addressing climate change, and controlling infectious diseases, particularly those of global and regional importance. In 2005, Indonesia reached a historic peace agreement with armed separatists in Aceh, which led to democratic elections in Aceh in December 2006. Indonesia continues to face low intensity armed resistance in Papua by the separatist Free Papua Movement.
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How big is Indonesia compared to Malaysia? See an in-depth size comparison.

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