In 1991 Malaysia’s total population was 17,566,982. The nation’s around 2001 population was 22,229,040, yielding an overall population density of 67 persons per sq km (175 per sq mi). The population is unevenly distributed, and West Malaysia is about seven times more densely populated than East Malaysia. Some 57 % of Malaysia’s population is urban; like most developing nations, Malaysia has experienced high rural-to-urban migration rates since the 1950s. Urban unemployment is very low in Malaysia, and this contributes to the growth. The labor shortage for low-skill jobs attracts many immigrants, particularly from Indonesia, the Philippines, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. In addition to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s large cities include Ipoh, Johor Baharu, Petaling Jaya, Kelang, Kuala Terengganu, and George Town (formerly Pinang). Kuala Lumpur, Petaling Jaya, and Kelang are part of the Kelang Valley conurbation, Malaysia’s largest urban region. A new center of government administrative offices, Putrajaya, is being constructed about 40 km (about 25 mi) south of Kuala Lampur; it will be part of the greater Kuala Lumpur metropolitan area when completed in the early 21st century. Nearly one-half of Kuala Lumpur’s metropolitan area population resides in the surrounding state of Selangor, where Petaling Jaya, Kelang, and Shah Alam are located. Between 1980 and 1991 Selangor grew by 60.5 %, compared with only 27.8 % for Kuala Lumpur and about 26 % for the nation as a whole. Only one state, Sabah, had a higher growth rate (87 %) during the same time. Johor Baharu, located across from Singapore at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, is also growing rapidly. George Town, a major seaport and tourist destination, is on the island of Pinang.

Non-Malay indigenous groups make up more than half of the Borneo state of Sarawak's population and about 66% of the Borneo state of Sabah's population. They are separated into dozens of ethnic groups, but they share some general patterns of living and culture. Until the 20th century, most practiced orthodox beliefs, but many have become Christian or Muslim. The "other" category includes Malaysians of, inter alia, European and Middle Eastern descent. Population distribution is uneven, with some 15 million residents concentrated in the lowlands of peninsular Malaysia, an area slightly smaller than the state of Michigan.