Brunei vs Malaysia
Malaysia is 57.4 times larger than Brunei. Brunei would fit into Malaysia about 57 times.
BruneiMalaysiaBrunei moved onto Malaysia · Equal-area projection
0.02×
Brunei is 0.02× the area of Malaysia. Put the other way, Malaysia is 57.4× the size of Brunei.
 Brunei |  Malaysia | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaMalaysia: 57.4× the area | 5,765 km²#164 of 194 | 330,803 km²#68 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 1 | 3 |
| People | ||
| PopulationMalaysia: 77.2× the population | 466,330#169 of 194 · 2025 | 35,977,838#45 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityMalaysia: 1.34× the density | 81 / km²#103 of 194 | 109 / km²#81 of 194 |
| Urban populationMalaysia: 1.03× the urban share | 75%#58 of 192 · 2025 | 77%#52 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateBrunei: 1.12× the births per woman | 1.73 per woman#113 of 192 · 2024 | 1.54 per woman#131 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthMalaysia: 0.39 points higher | +0.78%#110 of 192 · 2025 | +1.17%#87 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateBrunei: 1.07× the birth rate | 13.3 per 1,000#104 of 192 · 2024 | 12.4 per 1,000#109 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateAbout the same death rate | 5.3 per 1,000#162 of 192 · 2024 | 5.3 per 1,000#162 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Malaysia: 0.7 points higher | 20.6%#112 of 192 · 2025 | 21.3%#107 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Malaysia: 0.8 points higher | 7.2%#99 of 192 · 2025 | 8.0%#95 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationMalaysia: 4.6 per 1,000 higher | 0.0 per 1,000#73 of 192 · 2025 | +4.6 per 1,000#22 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadMalaysia: 7.0× the refugees for its size | 0.01 per 1,000#155 of 190 · 2025 | 0.07 per 1,000#126 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyMalaysia: 1.3 years longer | 75.5 years#81 of 192 · 2024 | 76.8 years#67 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityBrunei: 1.23× the infant mortality | 8.6 per 1,000 births#118 of 191 · 2024 | 7.0 per 1,000 births#132 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsMalaysia: 1.24× the doctors per person | 1.89 per 1,000#84 of 178 · 2021 | 2.34 per 1,000#77 of 178 · 2023 |
| University enrolmentMalaysia: 1.06× the university enrolment | 36.4%#96 of 145 · 2023 | 38.5%#91 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexBrunei: 0.018 higher | 0.837#59 of 190 · 2023 | 0.819#66 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaBrunei: 2.81× the income per person | $34,790#35 of 185 · 2025 | $12,380#73 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPMalaysia: 31.4× the economy | $15.03B2025 | $472.19B2025 |
| Income group | High income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Brunei: 2.23× the output per person | $92,430#8 of 184 · 2025 | $41,498#54 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthMalaysia: 4.5 points higher | +0.7%#162 of 187 · 2025 | +5.2%#43 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationMalaysia: 1.7 points higher | −0.3%#168 of 176 · 2025 | +1.4%#133 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentBrunei: 1.39× the unemployment | 5.3%#83 of 178 · 2025 | 3.8%#115 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | — | 0.0%#136 of 149 · 2021 |
| Income inequality (Gini) | — | 40.7#33 of 149 · 2021 |
| Jobs in agricultureMalaysia: 8.0 points higher | 1.2% of jobs#166 of 178 · 2025 | 9.2% of jobs#112 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryMalaysia: 5.6 points higher | 20.4% of jobs#74 of 178 · 2025 | 26.0% of jobs#35 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesBrunei: 13.5 points higher | 78.4% of jobs#19 of 178 · 2025 | 64.9% of jobs#72 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentMalaysia: 4.2 points higher | 0.4% of GDP#150 of 184 · 2025 | 4.6% of GDP#40 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsBrunei: 0.6 points higher | 71.6% of GDP#22 of 168 · 2025 | 71.0% of GDP#24 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingBrunei: 3.51× the military spending | 3.6% of GDP#15 of 155 · 2024 | 1.0% of GDP#111 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersAbout the same share online | 96%#18 of 184 · 2024 | 98%#12 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsMalaysia: 1.19× the mobile subscriptions | 118 per 100#87 of 191 · 2024 | 140 per 100#36 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaBrunei: 1.25× the forest share | 72% of land#13 of 192 · 2024 | 58% of land#32 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personBrunei: 2.43× the CO₂ per person | 20.2 t a year#5 of 185 · 2024 | 8.32 t a year#23 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyMalaysia: 7.5 points higher | 0.0%#188 of 190 · 2021 | 7.5%#153 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityThe same | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Malaysia: 2.09× the air pollution | 7.6 µg/m³#169 of 191 · 2023 | 15.9 µg/m³#109 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landBrunei: 26.6 points higher | 39.9% of land#9 of 191 · 2025 | 13.3% of land#127 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landMalaysia: 1.8 points higher | 0.8% of land#173 of 190 · 2024 | 2.6% of land#154 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressAbout the same water stress | 3.5%#135 of 176 · 2022 | 3.4%#136 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationMalaysia: 1.06× the rain and snow | 2,722 mm#9 of 180 · 2022 | 2,875 mm#8 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityBrunei: 1.16 higher | +1.50#5 of 193 · 2025 | +0.34#77 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionBrunei: 0.43 higher | +0.99#34 of 193 · 2025 | +0.56#55 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rate | — | 0.7 per 100,000#123 of 146 · 2023 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Absolute monarchyabsolute monarchy or sultanate | Constitutional monarchyfederal parliamentary constitutional monarchy |
| Member of | ASEAN | ASEAN |
| Capital | Bandar Seri Begawan | Kuala Lumpur |
| Currency | Brunei dollar (BND) | Malaysian ringgit (MYR) |
| Official languages | Malay, British English | Malay |
| Traffic drives | On the left | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC+8 | UTC+8 |
| Calling code | +673 | +60 |
| Region | South-Eastern Asia, Asia | South-Eastern Asia, Asia |
Area: Wikidata. Population, income, health, economy, environment and governance: World Bank. Human Development Index: UNDP. Government: CIA World Factbook. Ranks among the 194 independent states. All sources
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Brunei sits at about 5° N and is stretched to 1.01× its true area; Malaysia at 4° N is stretched to 1.0×. Here the two are distorted about the same amount, so Mercator gets this pair roughly right. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Brunei bigger than Malaysia?
- No. Brunei is 57.4 times smaller than Malaysia. Brunei covers 5,765 km² and Malaysia covers 330,803 km².
- How many times does Brunei fit into Malaysia?
- About 57 times: Malaysia has 57.4× the area of Brunei.
- Why do Brunei and Malaysia look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Brunei is drawn about 1.01× its true area there and Malaysia about 1.0×. For this pair the distortion is similar, so Mercator gets the comparison roughly right. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Brunei or Malaysia?
- Malaysia: 35,977,838 people against 466,330. Density: Brunei 81 per km², Malaysia 109 per km².
- Which is richer, Brunei or Malaysia?
- By gross national income per person, Brunei: $34,790 against $12,380 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 2.81× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Brunei or Malaysia?
- In Malaysia: life expectancy at birth is 76.8 years, against 75.5 — 1.3 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Brunei and Malaysia have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Brunei: absolute monarchy; Malaysia: constitutional monarchy.