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The formal workforce grew 3.3% year on year to 7.20mn employees, while the top 10% of earners received at least RM9,600 a month.
The median monthly wage for Malaysia's formal sector employees rose 4.8% to RM3,000 in June 2026, according to the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOSM).
The Employee Wages Statistics (Formal Sector) Report, Second Quarter 2026 provides wage statistics for Malaysian formal sector employees based on administrative data.
The number of Malaysian formal sector employees also increased to 7.20mn in June 2026, up 3.3% from 6.97mn in June 2025.
Male employees accounted for 55.1% of the formal workforce, or 3.97mn people, and recorded a median monthly wage of RM3,000. Female employees made up the remaining 44.9%, or 3.23mn people, with a median monthly wage of RM2,964.
By age group, employees aged 45 to 49 continued to record the highest median monthly wages throughout the second quarter of 2026. Their median monthly wage stood at RM4,000 in April and RM3,945 in both May and June.
Employees aged 50 to 54 recorded the highest year-on-year increase in median monthly wages. Meanwhile, the median monthly wage for employees below 20 years old remained unchanged at RM1,700 since February 2025.
By economic activity, mining and quarrying recorded the highest median monthly wage at RM6,722 in June 2026, despite accounting for only 0.5% of total formal sector employees. Agriculture recorded the lowest median monthly wage at RM2,282, with the sector making up 1.8% of the formal workforce.
Across the states, Kuala Lumpur recorded the highest median monthly wage at RM4,245 in June 2026. Selangor followed at RM3,245, while Pulau Pinang recorded RM3,000. The lowest median monthly wages were recorded in Kelantan at RM1,827, followed by Perlis at RM1,864 and Sabah at RM2,045.
The share of Malaysian formal sector employees earning below RM1,700 a month fell to 8.2% in June 2026, down 2.2 percentage points from 10.4% in June 2025. However, the wage distribution continued to show a substantial gap between the lowest and highest earners. The bottom 10% of Malaysian formal sector employees earned RM1,700 or less per month, while those in the top 10% earned at least RM9,600.
This means the monthly wage threshold for the top 10% was more than five times the RM1,700 threshold for the bottom 10%, highlighting the difference in earnings across Malaysia’s formal workforce.
Overall, Malaysia recorded growth in both formal sector employment and median monthly wages in the second quarter of 2026. However, differences in earnings across age groups, economic activities and states, alongside the gap between the highest and lowest earners, remain notable features of the country’s wage landscape.
Find the full report here.
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Infographic / DOSM
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