Malaysia Through The Eyes Of Expats

InterNations listed Malaysia as the fourth-best place for expats to live and work abroad in 2021 globally out of 59 countries, after Taiwan, Mexico, and Costa Rica. The result is based on a survey conducted with 12,240 expats representing 174 different nationalities and living in 186 countries or territories worldwide according to 37 rating factors, from the local air quality to their financial situation.

InterNations is the world’s largest expat community boasting around four million members that gathers information and creates a community for expats from all around the world. The criteria for the top 10 list include “cost of living, ease of settling in and overall quality of life.”

The Best & Worst Places for Expats in 2021

Malaysia: Getting By without Local Language Skills

Malaysia ranks second in the Ease of Settling In Index and fourth overall. The country has consistently placed in the top 10 of the index since 2017 and makes it to the top 5 in three of the four subcategories.

Ease of Settling In Index 2021
  • More than four in nine expats in Malaysia (45%) agree that the local language is easy to learn (vs. 39% globally).
  • 92% find it easy to live there without local language skills — 55% even agree completely (vs. a global 54% and 21%, respectively). English is widely spoken across the country.
  • Over a quarter (27%) even say that they don’t speak the native language, Malay, at all.

When it comes to Feeling at Home, Malaysia ranks third. “It is easy to live here,” says an expat from the USA, “and the people are wonderful.”

  • 80% of expats in the country find it easy to get used to the local culture, 36% even very much so (vs. a global 65% and 21%, respectively).
  • Around three-quarters find it easy to settle down in Malaysia (77%) and feel at home in the local culture (74%), compared to a global average of 62% and 63%, respectively.

Survey respondents in the country also find it easy to make local friends: “Making friends here is not difficult,” an expat from India explains. “You meet a lot of honest people here.”

  • 63% say as much (vs. 44% globally) and a quarter (25%) even agrees completely.
  • Close to two-thirds (66%) believe that it’s generally easy to find new friends in Malaysia (vs. 48% globally), whether they are fellow expats or locals.

Although Malaysia does not rank in the top 10 of the Friendliness subcategory — the country places 15th.

  • 82% rate the general friendliness of the population positively (vs. 69% globally).
  • Close to four in five expats (79%) also agree that people in Malaysia are generally friendly towards foreign residents (vs. 67% globally).

The Personal Finance Index covers two questions:

  • “To which extent would you agree with the following statement? I’m satisfied with my financial situation.”
  • “Do you feel that your disposable household income is enough to cover everything you need for your daily life?”

The Cost of Living Index reflects respondents’ satisfaction with the cost of living in their host country.

Personal Finance and Cost of Living Index 2021

Malaysia’s low cost of living and high quality of life means that many expats choose to relocate here. The Malaysian government has encouraged foreigners to retire in Malaysia, as a fixed income can go a long way here.

Here’s a closer look at the costs of living in Malaysia as an expat:

Location Cost of living (single person/month) Cost of living (family of 4/month)
Kuala Lumpur USD486.75 USD1,735.76
Penang USD456.77 USD1,613.76
Johor Bahru USD501.00 USD1,783.81
Malaysia (average) USD457.32 USD1,622.22
Source: Numbeo

Kuala Lumpur: Welcoming & Affordable

Kuala Lumpur is crowned the world's best city to live in for expats in year 2021.

The Best & Worst Cities for Expats

Here’s why Kuala Lumpur is the no.1 choice for expats:

  • Kuala Lumpur (1st out of 57) ranks first in the Getting Settled Index — nearly all rating factors make it into the top 10.
  • Kuala Lumpur comes first in the Housing Subcategory and is only beaten by Ho Chi Minh City (1st) with regard to finance: 64% of expats have a disposable household income that is more than enough to cover expenses in Kuala Lumpur (vs. 52% globally).

Kuala Lumpur: A City for Friendships

Getting Settled Index 2021

Kuala Lumpur ranks first in the Getting Settled Index in 2021 — this is the third time that the city has made it to the top of this index. Expats are particularly impressed when it comes to making connections. One Swiss expat describes Kuala Lumpur as “very international with lovely people”, and a survey respondent from India says that “making friends is not difficult”.

  • 74% are happy with their social life in Kuala Lumpur, and close to two-thirds of expats in the city (65%) agree that it’s easy to find new friends there, compared to 57% and 48% globally.

Kuala Lumpur also excels in the Local Language Subcategory.

  • 92% of expats there believe that it’s easy to live in the city without speaking the local language (vs. just 54% globally), and 57% even agree completely.
  • Only a little more than half (53%) also consider the local language easy to learn — which is still more than the global average of 39%.
  • Only 27% of expats in Kuala Lumpur speak the local language at least fairly well, while 73% say that they speak it only a little or not at all.
  • More than four in five expats in Kuala Lumpur (81%) rate the general friendliness of the local population positively (vs. 69% globally).
  • Over three-quarters (77%) say that people in Kuala Lumpur are generally friendly towards foreign residents, compared to 67% globally.
  • Three-quarters (75%) feel right at home in the city (vs. 65% globally).
  • 78% find it easy to get used to the local culture (vs. 65% globally).

Kuala Lumpur Defends Its Title

When it comes to affordable living, it doesn’t get much better than the Malaysian capital. Kuala Lumpur continues its winning streak in 2021. In addition to being the overall winner of the Expat City Ranking 2021, this Malaysian city also tops the Finance & Housing Index. It also came in first place in this index in 2020 and has consistently ranked in the top 3 for Finance & Housing since 2017.

Finance and Housing Index 2021

Kuala Lumpur is the destination for affordable and easily available expat housing, ranking first in the Housing Subcategory.

  • More than nine in ten (91%) agree that it’s easy for expats to find housing in Kuala Lumpur (vs. 60% globally), with three in five (60%) even agreeing completely (vs. 24% globally).
  • Close to three-quarters of expats (74%) also find that housing is affordable there (vs. 42% globally).
  • Almost three in ten (29%) even consider the affordability very good — over twice the global average of 14%!

It seems that Kuala Lumpur is generally quite an affordable place to live.

  • Close to two-thirds (64%) say their disposable household income is more than they need for daily life (vs. 52% worldwide).
  • This is also reflected in the Local Cost of Living Index, with 31% very satisfied in this regard, more than double the global average (14%).

The result is in line with the findings of the 2021 Mercer Cost of Living survey, which saw Kuala Lumpur (144th out of 209 cities) drop eight places in a ranking that puts the most expensive destinations at the top. What is more, expats in Kuala Lumpur are the most satisfied of all respondents with their financial situation (80% positive vs. 64% globally).

Kuala Lumpur: Ranked 1st Among Cities in Asia

Cities in Asia

85% of expats reported that they’re happy with life in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

After reading what others say about Malaysia, is this the ideal country that you will consider to move to? If yes, fill up the form and let us do the rest.

Source: InterNations