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The median monthly wage reached RM2,864 in September 2025, supported by steady employment growth, with higher pay concentrated in Kuala Lumpur and the mining & quarrying sector.
Malaysia’s median monthly wage for formal workers increased to RM2,864 in September 2025, marking a 4.3% rise compared with RM2,745 in the same month last year, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).
Per the report, the wage growth came alongside stable employment conditions, with the number of formal workers growing by 3.5% year-on-year in July, August and September 2025, pointing to continued resilience in the formal labour market.
Gender wage comparison
By gender, male formal workers made up 55.1% of total formal employment, or 3.89mn people, in September 2025. They recorded a higher median monthly wage of RM2,900.
Female formal workers accounted for 44.9% of the workforce, or 3.17mn people, with a median monthly wage of RM2,800 during the same period.
Wages by age group
Across age groups, workers aged 45 to 49 continued to earn the highest median monthly wage throughout the third quarter of 2025. Their median wage stood at RM3,800 in July, August and September.
All age groups recorded year-on-year increases in median wages. The strongest growth was seen among workers below the age of 20, whose median monthly wage rose to RM1,700 in September 2025, an increase of 13.3% compared with a year earlier.
Differences by economic activity
An analysis by economic activity showed that all sectors recorded higher median monthly wages across the three months in the third quarter.
The mining & quarrying sector, while accounting for just 0.6% of total formal sector employment, continued to post the highest median monthly wage at RM6,600 in September 2025. This represented a year-on-year increase of 11.9%.
In contrast, the agriculture sector, which contributed 1.8% of formal citizen workers, recorded the lowest median monthly wage at RM2,245.
Wage levels across states
Looking at geographical differences, Kuala Lumpur recorded the highest median monthly wage at RM4,064. This was followed by Selangor at RM3,127 and Penang at RM2,927.
At the lower end of the scale, Kelantan and Perlis both recorded median monthly wages of RM1,800, while Sabah and Kedah reported RM2,000 during the same period.
Wage distribution and income gap
DOSM also highlighted improvements at the lower end of the wage scale. In September 2025, 8.8% of formal workers earned less than RM1,700 per month, a drop of 13.5 percentage points compared with September 2024.
Percentile analysis showed that the lowest 10% of formal workers earned RM1,700 or less per month, while workers in the 90th percentile received at least RM9,000 monthly. This means workers in the highest income group earned around five times more than those at the bottom, reflecting the ongoing wage gap within the formal sector.
Strengthening wage data going forward
Concluding the release, Dato’ Sri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin, Chief Statistician of Malaysia said the statistics were based on administrative data from relevant agencies, focusing on citizens working in the formal sector, particularly in the private sector.
He added that DOSM will continue to strengthen the dissemination of employee wage statistics by integrating various administrative data sources, with the aim of producing more detailed insights into Malaysia’s labour market.
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