One country. Different pharmacy footprints.

Selangor has 1,209 active licence records, or 25.5% of the 4,747 included nationally—more than twice Johor’s 543. Together, Selangor, Johor and Kuala Lumpur account for 47.3% of the total. The concentration in these three areas shows where the largest absolute numbers of licence records are located. Licence counts do not represent pharmacist headcounts.

Sabah has 14,488 people per active licence record, approximately 3.4 times Kuala Lumpur’s 4,241. Pahang, Terengganu, Labuan and Kelantan also exceed 10,000. The national figure is 7,244. States and federal territories below the national figure include Kuala Lumpur (4,241), Pulau Pinang (5,037), Putrajaya (5,781), Selangor (6,166), Sarawak (6,225), Negeri Sembilan (6,606) and Perak (7,181). The contrast between Sabah and Sarawak shows that East Malaysia does not form a single pattern at state level.

The MOH series rose from 3,513 premises in 2021 to a peak of 4,320 in 2024. Annual growth slowed from 12.3% in 2022 to 7.6% in 2023 and 1.7% in 2024, before the count fell 2.6% to 4,208 in 2025. The series therefore shows a slowdown followed by a decline in 2025. This analysis records 4,133 premises in September 2026, numerically 1.8% below the 2025 figure. However, differences in inclusion criteria and reference dates prevent direct comparison of the 2026 count with the earlier MOH figures from confirming a further national decline.

Selangor has 998 included premises, or 24.1% of the national total, followed by Johor with 480. Kuala Lumpur (376) and Sarawak (375) have similar counts despite their different population sizes and geographical areas, while Sabah has 247 premises for approximately 3.8 million residents. These comparisons show why absolute counts need to be read alongside population ratios: near-equal totals do not establish equivalent availability. State totals also do not show how premises are distributed within each state.

Sabah records 15,251 people per included premise, approximately 83% above the national figure of 8,321. Pahang, Terengganu, Labuan and Kelantan also exceed 10,000, so high ratios are not confined to Sabah. Kuala Lumpur has the lowest figure at 5,538, followed by Pulau Pinang at 5,759 and Sarawak at 6,773; Putrajaya records 7,141.

Sabah accounts for nine of the 20 districts with the highest people-per-premise ratios. Sarawak and Pahang contribute three each, Kedah two, and Terengganu, Perak and Negeri Sembilan one each. Sarawak’s presence despite its below-national state ratio illustrates how state averages can conceal district differences. Sabah and Sarawak together contribute 12 of the 20 districts (60%). This ranking highlights where high population-to-premise ratios recur, rather than how many districts in each state have high ratios overall. It also leaves out areas with no matched premises, which require separate assessment.

Six states have household incomes below the national median and people-per-premise ratios above the national figure: Sabah, Pahang, Kelantan, Terengganu, Perlis and Kedah. Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya, Selangor and Pulau Pinang combine higher household incomes with lower ratios. Sarawak, Negeri Sembilan, Melaka and Perak have lower incomes and lower ratios; Perak is close to the national ratio. Johor and Labuan have higher incomes but also higher ratios. Johor’s approximately 4.2 million residents and 8,801 people per premise make it a sizeable exception to a simple income-based explanation. Together, these patterns suggest that household income alone does not explain differences in premise availability.

Twenty-seven of the 141 eligible analytical areas meet both screening thresholds: at least 127,200 residents and at least 11,433.33 people per premise. They represent 19.1% of eligible areas and combine relatively large populations with relatively few matched premises. The screening identifies areas that are relatively large and have high ratios within this sample. It does not rank commercial potential or establish unmet demand.

Sabah contributes seven selected areas, Terengganu five and Johor four, together accounting for 59.3% of the group. Kelantan, Melaka and Selangor contribute two each; Kedah, Negeri Sembilan, Pahang, Perak and Sarawak contribute one each. The spread across 11 states shows that relatively large populations combined with high people-per-premise ratios are not confined to East Malaysia. Johor’s four selected areas are consistent with its above-national state ratio. Counts show each state’s representation among the 27 selected areas and provide a basis for examining the individual areas more closely.

A storefront brand is the name used by a pharmacy at its premises. This figure counts each identified storefront brand separately, even when several brands share an owner. Seven storefront brands have more than 100 premises each, together accounting for 1,442 premises (34.9% of all included premises). Another 47 brands have 6–100 premises. The 1–5-premise band contains 1,440 brands covering 1,788 premises. These are counts by storefront name, so a small brand is not necessarily an independently owned pharmacy. The next section combines brands into ownership-based brand groups.

A brand group brings together storefront brands assigned to the same owner where published ownership information supports the link. Unlike the previous figure, this comparison counts premises by brand group rather than storefront name. BIG CARiNG Group has the largest recorded footprint with 636 premises (15.4%), followed by Alpro Group with 277, Health Lane Family Pharmacy with 259 and PMG Healthcare Group with 191. The four groups together account for 33.0% of included premises. The ten largest groups account for 1,877 premises (45.4%); the remaining 2,256 include other classified groups and unresolved classifications, so they cannot all be described as independent pharmacies. These totals show the scale of classified networks within the included dataset; they do not show revenue or dispensing volumes.

The following state comparisons continue to use brand groups, rather than individual storefront brands or the chain-size bands above. BIG CARiNG Group leads by premise count in eight states and federal territories. PMG Healthcare Group leads in Sabah, Sarawak and Labuan; Farmasi Lautan in Kelantan and Terengganu; Mega Kulim Pharmacy in Kedah; Alpro Group in Negeri Sembilan; and VCare Pharmacy in Putrajaya. VCare has the highest leading-group share at 23.5%, followed by Farmasi Lautan’s 23.2% in Terengganu. No identified group reaches 25% in any state or federal territory. Kedah’s leading group accounts for 8.2% of included premises, compared with Putrajaya’s 23.5%, showing how the leading group’s share varies between areas.

BIG CARiNG Group has recorded premises in all states and federal territories, while Alpro Group and Watsons are represented everywhere except Labuan. Other groups have more concentrated footprints. Health Lane has 160 of its 259 premises in Selangor and Kuala Lumpur, compared with 75 of 129 for Sunway Multicare and 79 of 88 for AA Pharmacy. Mega Kulim is concentrated mainly in Kedah and Pulau Pinang, while Farmasi Lautan’s recorded premises are confined to Kelantan and Terengganu. PMG’s largest recorded counts are in Sarawak (57), Johor (44) and Sabah (37). Among the ten groups shown, only PMG (37), BIG CARiNG (27) and Alpro (26) have more than five recorded premises in Sabah; other groups operating there are outside this chart’s scope.