Pahang: the largest state in Peninsular Malaysia, but only 46 people per square kilometre

Pahang covers more than a quarter of the land area of Peninsular Malaysia, yet only one in every 20 Malaysians lives there.

That single fact explains almost everything about this state: why its forests remain so extensive, why its economy leans on land rather than factories, and why Taman Negara can exist in a form that could not survive in Selangor or Penang.

Key facts

Full name	Negeri Pahang Darul Makmur
Administrative state capital	Kuantan
Royal town	Pekan
Head of state	Sultan of Pahang
Area	35,965 km²
Administrative districts	11
Population (2025, initial estimate)	1,678,200 people
Population density	46 people / km²
GDP (2025, 2015 constant prices)	RM71.0 billion
Coastline	About 208 km facing the South China Sea

Source: official Pahang State Government portal, DOSM and Tourism Pahang.

Vast space, sparse population

Pahang borders Kelantan to the north; Perak, Selangor and Negeri Sembilan to the west; Johor to the south; and Terengganu and the South China Sea to the east. It touches six other states — more than any other state in the Peninsula.

Its population figures move slowly. DOSM estimates 1,678,200 people in 2025, up from 1,667,700 in 2024. That 0.6 percent annual growth rate actually exceeds the national rate of 0.5 percent, but the base is small: Pahang accounts for only 4.9 percent of Malaysia’s 34.2 million population.

Divide population by land, and the resulting figure tells the whole story:

Area	Population density (people/km², 2025)
W.P. Kuala Lumpur	8,546
Penang	1,749
Malaysia average	104
Terengganu	96
Sabah	51
Pahang	46
Sarawak	20

Source: DOSM, Anggaran Penduduk Semasa Malaysia 2025.

Only Sarawak is sparser. DOSM also records two other demographic features for 2025: Pahang’s sex ratio is 114 men for every 100 women — among the highest in the country — and Pahang became one of three states to newly reach ageing-state status, with 7.1 percent of its population aged 65 and above.

Eleven districts, two centres

Pahang is divided into 11 administrative districts: Pekan, Kuantan, Rompin, Maran, Bera, Jerantut, Temerloh, Raub, Bentong, Lipis and Cameron Highlands.

The state operates with two centres serving different functions. Kuantan is the administrative state capital and the location of Wisma Sri Pahang, the Office of the State Secretary. Pekan, meanwhile, is the royal town.

Its geography is also layered. On the east coast lies a coastal strip about 208 kilometres long facing the South China Sea. Inland stretches the Pahang River basin. To the west lie highlands — Cameron Highlands, Genting Highlands and Fraser’s Hill — making Pahang the only state that hosts all three of the Peninsula’s major hill-resort centres.

Economy: the state most dependent on land

Pahang’s GDP was worth RM71.0 billion in 2025 (2015 constant prices), up from RM68.8 billion in 2024 — growth of about 3.2 percent, following a faster increase of about 5.8 percent the year before.

The breakdown by sector is what sets Pahang apart:

Sector	2025 value (RM billion)	Share of state GDP
Services	37.3	52.6%
Agriculture	15.9	22.4%
Manufacturing	14.7	20.8%
Construction	2.3	3.3%
Mining and quarrying	0.6	0.8%

Values from the DOSM data catalogue; percentage shares calculated from those values.

Agriculture’s 22.4 percent share is the highest among all states in Malaysia based on 2025 DOSM figures — surpassing Kelantan (about 19.8 percent) and Perlis (about 16.5 percent). By comparison, in Selangor agriculture contributes only about 1.1 percent.

Oil palm explains much of this. As at December 2025, MPOB recorded 745,445 hectares of planted oil palm area in Pahang — 13.1 percent of the Malaysian total, and the largest area in the Peninsula, surpassing Johor (675,558 hectares). Nearly 30 percent of all oil palm area in Peninsular Malaysia is located in Pahang. The background of this sector is explained in the oil palm industry.

Notice too what is small. Mining and quarrying contributes less than one percent of state GDP, even though Pahang’s history is often associated with tin and gold mining.

Taman Negara: a forest older than the Himalayas

Taman Negara covers 4,343 square kilometres and crosses the borders of three states — Pahang, Kelantan and Terengganu. As a sense of scale, that area is equivalent to about 12 percent of Pahang’s own area, although the park is not located entirely within this state.

The official Tourism Pahang portal describes it as among the oldest rainforests in the world, about 130 million years old, with about 14,000 plant species, over 300 bird species, 250 freshwater fish species and 200 mammal species.

Within it stands Gunung Tahan, 2,187 metres tall, the highest peak in Peninsular Malaysia. The PERHILITAN Department lists two seven-day, six-night trekking route packages — from Kuala Tahan up and back down to Kuala Tahan, or from Kuala Tahan down to Kuala Juram in Merapoh — and requires a mountain guide for every group.

Item	Details
Main entry point	Kuala Tahan, Jerantut district
Distance from Jerantut town	About 68 km
Park management	PERHILITAN Department
Notable feature	Canopy walkway suspended about 45 metres above ground

Taman Negara’s importance is not merely touristic. It is the only large lowland rainforest block in the Peninsula that has been continuously protected since before independence, and it functions as a catchment area for a river system that flows into three states. Tourism’s contribution to the national economy is discussed in the tourism article.

Royal institutions and Pekan

The head of state of Pahang holds the title Sultan of Pahang. The official Istana Pahang website lists His Majesty’s full title as Kebawah Duli Paduka Baginda Sultan Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah ibni Al-Marhum Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah.

The same site records that His Majesty was born on 30 July 1959, was appointed Tengku Mahkota Pahang (Crown Prince of Pahang) on 1 July 1975, and became Regent on 28 April 1979.

According to the official list of the Parliament of Malaysia, His Majesty held the position of the 16th Yang di-Pertuan Agong from 31 January 2019 to 30 January 2024, representing Pahang in the rotation of the Conference of Rulers. That position is now held by Sultan Ibrahim ibni Almarhum Sultan Iskandar of Johor since 31 January 2024.

The state’s royal town is Pekan, the centre of Pahang’s royal institutions and the state’s former administrative centre before Kuantan.

The Sultan’s position as head of state, and the relationship between the state and the Federation, is framed by the Federal Constitution together with each state’s own constitution. This structure varies between states — compare with Negeri Sembilan, whose head of state is elected and holds the title Yang di-Pertuan Besar.

This section is purely descriptive and does not make any judgement.

Common misconceptions

“Pahang is the largest state in Malaysia.” It is the largest state in the Peninsula. Sarawak and Sabah are both larger.

“Kuantan is the royal town.” Kuantan is the administrative state capital. The royal town is Pekan.

“Taman Negara is Pahang’s state park.” It crosses Pahang, Kelantan and Terengganu, and is managed by the PERHILITAN Department at the federal level for Peninsular Malaysia.

“Sparse population means a small economy.” Pahang’s GDP of RM71.0 billion in 2025 exceeds several more populous states. Its economy per unit of land is indeed low, but its overall output is not small.

“Cameron Highlands is a town, not a district.” Cameron Highlands is one of Pahang’s 11 administrative districts.

Note on the figures

The 2025 population figure is DOSM’s initial estimate, not a full census, and is typically revised. GDP figures are stated at 2015 constant prices so that year-on-year comparisons are meaningful; values at current prices will differ. The sector shares in the table above are calculated by the editor from DOSM’s absolute values.

This article is a draft status and has not yet undergone human review.

What’s next

• For district- and DUN-level population, income or economic data, use the DOSM data catalogue and dashboard.
• For the national economic context in which the RM71.0 billion figure sits, see the overview of Malaysia’s GDP.
• To understand the sector that forms the backbone of Pahang’s economy, see the oil palm industry.
• For comparisons of state structures, see Johor, Selangor and Negeri Sembilan.
• For permit, accommodation and route information for Taman Negara, refer directly to the official PERHILITAN Department website before planning a visit.