Malaysia Geography - 2023

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

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

Geographic coordinates

2 30 N, 112 30 E

Map references

Southeast Asia

Area

total: 329,847 sq km

land: 328,657 sq km

water: 1,190 sq km

Area - comparative

slightly larger than New Mexico

Land boundaries

total: 2,742 km

border countries (3): Brunei 266 km; Indonesia 1,881 km; Thailand 595 km

Coastline

4,675 km (Peninsular Malaysia 2,068 km, East Malaysia 2,607 km)

Maritime claims

territorial sea: 12 nm

exclusive economic zone: 200 nm

continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation; specified boundary in the South China Sea

Climate

tropical; annual southwest (April to October) and northeast (October to February) monsoons

Terrain

coastal plains rising to hills and mountains

Elevation

highest point: Gunung Kinabalu 4,095 m

lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m

mean elevation: 419 m

Natural resources

tin, petroleum, timber, copper, iron ore, natural gas, bauxite

Land use

agricultural land: 23.2% (2018 est.)

arable land: 2.9% (2018 est.)

permanent crops: 19.4% (2018 est.)

permanent pasture: 0.9% (2018 est.)

forest: 62% (2018 est.)

other: 14.8% (2018 est.)

Irrigated land

4,420 sq km (2020)

Population distribution

a highly uneven distribution with over 80% of the population residing on the Malay Peninsula

Natural hazards

flooding; landslides; forest fires

Geography - note

strategic location along Strait of Malacca and southern South China Sea

NOTE: The information regarding Malaysia on this page is re-published from the 2023 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Malaysia 2023 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Malaysia 2023 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.