English Proficiency In Malaysia Gets High Ranking Globally For 2024

English is the most spoken language in the world if you include all second language speakers. Chances are that if you have a good grasp of English, you would likely be able to get by in most places in the world.

As such, the English language has certainly earned its palace as the lingua franca for business, sciences, technology, and popular culture.

Kuala Lumpur’s ranking in English proficiency

In the latest surveys conducted by the Education First (EF) English Proficiency Index (EPI) rankings, both Kuala Lumpur and Malaysia as a whole scored very well. The survey evaluates the English language proficiency of 2.1 million non-native English speakers aged 18 and over, across 116 countries and regions.

In the survey, it was revealed that Kuala Lumpur ranked in the top 10 of capital cities within the “high English proficiency category, scoring 584, up from the 564 scored last year.

This puts Malaysia ahead of many other prominent non-native English speaking capitals such as Brussels, Lagos, Kyiv, and Seoul. Prague remains the city at the top of the “high proficiency” category while Amsterdam reigns supreme in the “very high proficiency category”.

Top 10 EF EPI 2024 capital city scores (high proficiency)

1. Prague – 596
2. Manila – 592
3. Belgrade – 590
4. Tallinn – 589
5. Nairobi – 586
6. Paris – 586
7. Vilnius – 585
8. Buenos Aires – 584
9. Kuala Lumpur – 584
10. Brussels – 580

Global English proficiency ranking

So how did Malaysia do on the global scale? Among the non-native English speaking countries, not bad at all! According to the EF EPI survey, Malaysia ranked 26th out of the 116 countries surveyed, with a total score of 566. This is a slight decline of 2 points compared to last year, but is good enough for the country to hold on to its 26th spot on the rankings.

This ranking puts Malaysia ahead of prominent nations such as Argentina, Switzerland, Spain, and France, while also putting the country slightly behind the Philippines (22nd). Our neighbours in Singapore are unsurprisingly near the top of the pack at 3rd place, just behind the Netherlands, and Norway, who top the list.

Top 10 EF EPI 2024 country scores

1. Netherlands – 636
2. Norway – 610
3. Singapore – 609
4. Sweden – 608
5. Croatia – 607
6. Portugal – 605
7. Denmark – 603
8. Greece – 602
9. Austria – 600
10. Germany – 598

How about Asia?

As to how well Malaysia is doing in an Asian context, the answer is incredibly well. Based on the EF EPI rankings, Malaysia is the country with the 3rd highest score in English proficiency. As mentioned previously, only Singapore and the Philippines hold higher scores. This puts Malaysia ahead of places such as China, South Korea, Japan, India, and even Hong Kong.

Top 10 EF EPI 2024 country scores (Asia)

1. Singapore – 609
2. Philippines – 570
3. Malaysia – 566
4. Hong Kong (China) – 549
5. South Korea – 523
6. Nepal – 512
7. Bangladesh – 500
8. Vietnam – 498
9. Pakistan – 493
10. India – 490

Overall, the 2024 index sees an ongoing decline in worldwide English proficiency. It was also found that Asia’s English proficiency has declined more than any other region compared to last year, mainly driven by India and, to a lesser extent, China.