Malaysia has 13 states and 3 federal territories, for 16 administrative divisions in total. The 13 states are split across two land masses separated by the South China Sea: 11 lie in Peninsular Malaysia (West Malaysia), while Sabah and Sarawak sit on the island of Borneo (East Malaysia). The three federal territories — Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, and Labuan — are governed directly by the national government rather than by their own state authorities.
The 13 States by Region
Malaysia's federation stretches roughly 2,000 kilometres from the peninsula bordering Thailand to the northern coast of Borneo. The states divide neatly between the two regions:
- Peninsular Malaysia (11 states): Johor, Kedah, Kelantan, Melaka (Malacca), Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Penang (Pulau Pinang), Perak, Perlis, Selangor, and Terengganu.
- East Malaysia (2 states): Sabah and Sarawak, both on Borneo.
Despite having only two of the thirteen states, East Malaysia accounts for roughly 60% of the country's total land area. Sarawak alone is the largest state at about 124,450 km² — close to 37% of Malaysia's territory — while Sabah is the second largest. By contrast, the entire peninsula is carved into eleven much smaller states.
The Largest and Smallest States
The size gap between Malaysia's states is dramatic. Sarawak, the giant, dwarfs the tiny northern state of Perlis, which covers just 821 km² and is the smallest in the country. Population tells a different story: Selangor, the state wrapping around the capital, is both the most populous and the wealthiest, generating the highest state GDP and anchoring the urban Klang Valley conurbation. Johor in the south, facing Singapore across a narrow strait, is another economic heavyweight, while Sabah and Sarawak remain comparatively rural despite their vast areas and rich natural resources, including timber, oil, and gas.
The Three Federal Territories
Separate from the states, three federal territories are administered directly by the federal government:
- Kuala Lumpur: the national capital, financial hub, and home to the Petronas Twin Towers. It was carved out of Selangor in 1974.
- Putrajaya: the planned administrative capital, built in the 1990s to house government ministries and the prime minister's office, easing congestion in Kuala Lumpur.
- Labuan: a cluster of islands off the coast of Sabah that serves as an offshore financial centre and free trade zone.
These territories have no state ruler or local legislative assembly of their own, which is the key distinction between a territory and a state.
Malaysia's Rotating Monarchy
Malaysia's state structure underpins one of the most unusual political systems in the world. Nine of the thirteen states are headed by a hereditary royal ruler — most carry the title Sultan, though Perlis has a Raja and Negeri Sembilan a Yang di-Pertuan Besar. These nine rulers form the Conference of Rulers, and from among themselves they elect a national king, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, who serves a five-year term before the role rotates to another ruler. No other country chooses its monarch this way.
The remaining four states — Penang, Melaka, Sabah, and Sarawak — do not have royal houses. Instead, each is headed by a governor (Yang di-Pertua Negeri) appointed by the king. This split reflects history: the four non-royal states were largely shaped by colonial-era arrangements rather than traditional Malay sultanates.
How the States Came Together
Modern Malaysia was assembled in stages. Peninsular Malaya gained independence from Britain in 1957 as the Federation of Malaya. In 1963, Sabah and Sarawak (along with Singapore) joined to form Malaysia. Singapore left the federation in 1965 to become an independent country, leaving the 13-state configuration that endures today. Sarawak carries an especially colourful past: for a century it was ruled by the "White Rajahs," the British Brooke family, before becoming a crown colony and then a Malaysian state. To learn more about the wider country, see our malaysia country guide.
Two Landmasses, Six Hundred Kilometres Apart
Eleven of the thirteen states are on the Malay Peninsula; Sabah and Sarawak are on Borneo, separated from the rest of the country by the South China Sea. There is no road or rail link between the two halves, and every crossing is by air or sea.
Sarawak alone is larger than all eleven peninsular states combined, and the two Bornean states together account for roughly sixty per cent of national territory while holding under a quarter of the population.
The States Have Very Different Economies
Selangor and the Klang Valley around Kuala Lumpur generate the largest share of national output, built on manufacturing, services and the country's main port. Penang is the electronics centre, hosting semiconductor assembly and test operations for a long list of international firms since the 1970s.
Johor in the south has grown on its proximity to Singapore, with tens of thousands of people commuting across the causeway daily. Sarawak and Sabah hold most of the country's oil, gas and timber, and the share of that revenue returned to them has been a running political dispute since the 1970s.
Nine Sultans and a Rotating King
Nine of the thirteen states are monarchies, each with a hereditary ruler: seven sultans, plus the Raja of Perlis and the Yang di-Pertuan Besar of Negeri Sembilan. The remaining four, Penang, Malacca, Sabah and Sarawak, have appointed governors instead.
Those nine rulers form the Conference of Rulers and elect one of their number as Yang di-Pertuan Agong, the king of Malaysia, for a five-year term. The rotation follows a seniority order established at independence, which makes Malaysia the only country in the world with an elective monarchy working on a fixed rotation.
The rulers are also constitutional heads of Islam in their own states, which gives religious administration a state rather than federal character and is why rules on matters such as syariah courts differ noticeably between them.
Sabah and Sarawak Are Not Ordinary States
The two Bornean states joined the federation in 1963 on terms the peninsular states never had, set out in the Malaysia Agreement and the associated 20-point and 18-point memoranda.
They retain their own immigration control, so Malaysians from the peninsula pass through a checkpoint on arrival and cannot settle or work there freely. They have separate land and forestry powers, their own judiciary arrangements under the High Court in Sabah and Sarawak, and guarantees around religion and language that differ from the peninsular position.
The status has been politically live for decades. A constitutional amendment in 2021 restored wording describing Sabah and Sarawak as equal partners with peninsular Malaysia rather than as two of thirteen states, which was the formulation used before a 1976 amendment.
Singapore Was a State for Two Years
Malaysia briefly had fourteen states. Singapore joined at federation in 1963 and was expelled in August 1965 after disputes over economic policy and over the Malay special position, becoming the only country in modern history to gain independence against its own government's wishes.
Lee Kuan Yew announced the separation in tears on television. The episode still shapes the relationship between the two countries, which remain each other's largest trading partners while disagreeing periodically over water supply, airspace and reclaimed land.
Brunei negotiated to join at the same time and pulled out, largely over the treatment of its oil revenue and the seniority of its sultan among the Malay rulers. Had either decision gone differently the count would not be thirteen.
The Federal Territories and the Capital Question
Alongside the thirteen states sit three federal territories, all carved out of existing states and administered directly by the federal government. Kuala Lumpur was separated from Selangor in 1974, Labuan from Sabah in 1984, and Putrajaya from Selangor in 2001.
Putrajaya was built from scratch as an administrative capital and now holds most federal ministries and the prime minister's department, while Kuala Lumpur remains the official national capital and the seat of parliament.
Labuan, an island off Sabah, was designated an offshore financial centre and free trade zone, which is the reason a small island with under 100,000 residents has federal territory status at all.
Common Questions About Malaysia's States
How many states and federal territories does Malaysia have in total?
Malaysia has 16 administrative divisions overall: 13 states plus 3 federal territories (Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, and Labuan).
Which Malaysian states are on the island of Borneo?
Sabah and Sarawak are located on Borneo and together make up East Malaysia. Sarawak is the largest state in the country by area, and the federal territory of Labuan also lies off Sabah's coast.
How many states in Malaysia have a sultan?
Nine of the thirteen states have hereditary royal rulers. These nine rulers take turns serving as Malaysia's king under a five-year rotating monarchy, a system found nowhere else in the world.
What is the most populous state in Malaysia?
Selangor is the most populous and most economically developed state. It surrounds the capital, Kuala Lumpur, and forms the heart of the densely populated Klang Valley region.