Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Malaysia instead of Malta, you would:
Health
be 23.8% less likely to be obese
In Malta, 30.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Malaysia, that number is 23.3% of people as of 2024.
be 12.7% less likely to die by suicide
Malta has a suicide rate of 6.5 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Malaysia, it is 5.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 6.1 years less
In Malta, the average life expectancy is 83 years (81 years for men, 85 years for women) as of 2024. In Malaysia, that number is 77 years (74 years for men, 80 years for women) as of 2024.
see 74.7% less spent on your healthcare
Malta spends $5,706 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Malaysia spends $1,441 as of 2023.
have 48.1% fewer doctors per person
Malta has 45.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Malaysia has 23.4 as of 2023.
have 10.6% less access to essential health services
Malta scores 85 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Malaysia scores 76 as of 2021.
Economy
be 69.5% less likely to live below the poverty line
In Malta, 16.7% live below the poverty line as of 2021. In Malaysia, however, that number is 5.1% as of 2023.
be 29.7% more likely to be unemployed
In Malta, 2.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Malaysia, that number is 3.8% as of 2025.
make 72.6% less money
Malta has a GDP per capita of $47,907 as of 2025, while in Malaysia, the GDP per capita is $13,125 as of 2025.
Life
have 60.5% more children
In Malta, there are approximately 7.7 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Malaysia, there are 12.4 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 3.2 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Malta, approximately 8.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Malaysia, 26.0 women do as of 2023.
be 48.9% more likely to die during infancy
In Malta, approximately 4.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Malaysia, on the other hand, 7.0 children do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 25.5% less on education
Malta spends 4.7% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Malaysia spends 3.5% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 55.2% less on healthcare
Malta spends 8.8% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Malaysia, that number is 4.0% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 23.8 times more coastline
Malta has a total of 197 km of coastline. In Malaysia, that number is 4,675 km.
Safety
be 30.4% more likely to be murdered
Malta has a homicide rate of 0.6 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Malaysia, that number is 0.7 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 7.3 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Malta, road accidents kill 1.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Malaysia, they kill 13.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 95.3% less strain on fresh water
Malta withdraws 73% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Malaysia withdraws 3% as of 2022.
find 69.6% less home broadband
Malta has 44.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Malaysia has 13.6 as of 2024.
Environment
be 3.0 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Malta, air pollution causes 21.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Malaysia, it causes 63.0 as of 2019.
emit 2.6 times more CO2
Malta emits 3.2 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Malaysia emits 8.3 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Malta vs. Malaysia
Malaysia: At a glance
How big is Malaysia compared to Malta? See an in-depth size comparison.