From Indonesia’s vast $1.4 trillion economy to Singapore’s nearly $93,000 GDP per person, Southeast Asia reveals stark contrasts in national ambition, public investment, and scale.
Rich stories frequently lie behind raw numbers, and none better illustrate Southeast Asia’s complex economic mosaic than this region-wide snapshot from Voronoi and Visual Capitalist.
Indonesia leads in sheer size – 284 million people generating a GDP of $1.4 trillion in 2025. Yet GDP per capita is only around $5,000, reflecting both its size and development gaps. Compare that to Singapore, a tiny island of 6.1 million whose economy punches above its weight with a GDP of $565 billion and per capita output approaching $93,000, among the highest in the world.
FROM THE VERY RICH TO THE DESPERATELY POOR
Here’s how the region stacks up in terms of wealth and size, based on IMF 2025 estimates:
| Country | GDP (2025) | Population (2025) | GDP per Capita (2025) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🇮🇩 Indonesia | $1.4T | 284.4M | $5.0K |
| 🇸🇬 Singapore | $565B | 6.1M | $92.9K |
| 🇹🇭 Thailand | $546B | 70.3M | $7.8K |
| 🇵🇭 Philippines | $498B | 114.4M | $4.4K |
| 🇻🇳 Vietnam | $491B | 102.2M | $4.8K |
| 🇲🇾 Malaysia | $445B | 33.9M | $13.1K |
| 🇲🇲 Myanmar | $65B | 55.2M | $1.2K |
| 🇰🇭 Cambodia | $50B | 17.4M | $2.9K |
| 🇧🇳 Brunei | $16B | 460K | $35.0K |
| 🇱🇦 Laos | $16B | 7.8M | $2.1K |
| 🇹🇱 Timor-Leste | $2B | 1.4M | $1.5K |
HOW DO THE NATIONS OF ASEAN CHOOSE TO SPEND THEIR MONEY?
Even giant economies like Indonesia invest just 1.3% of GDP in education and 0.7% in defence – some of the lowest public investment ratios in the region. Contrast that with Singapore, which spends 2.2% on schooling and 2.7% on its armed forces, reflecting its focus on nurturing talent and ensuring security.
Those variations grow clearer here:
| Country | Education (% GDP) | Military (% GDP) |
|---|---|---|
| 🇧🇳 Brunei | 4.4%* | 3.0% |
| 🇵🇭 Philippines | 3.6% | 1.2% |
| 🇲🇾 Malaysia | 3.6% | 0.9% |
| 🇰🇭 Cambodia | 3.0% | 2.1% |
| 🇹🇱 Timor-Leste | 3.0%* | 1.3% |
| 🇹🇭 Thailand | 2.5% | 1.2% |
| 🇸🇬 Singapore | 2.2% | 2.7% |
| 🇻🇳 Vietnam | 2.2%* | 1.8%** |
| 🇲🇲 Myanmar | 2.0%* | 3.8% |
| 🇮🇩 Indonesia | 1.3% | 0.7% |
| 🇱🇦 Laos | 1.2% | 0.2%** |
* Latest available education data: Brunei (2016), Myanmar (2019), Timor‑Leste (2021), Vietnam (2022)
** Military spending data from Laos (2013) and Vietnam (2018). Timor‑Leste not an ASEAN member but shown for completeness.
Despite Singapore’s small size, it invests heavily in both education and defence – a blueprint for a knowledge-based economy with stability in mind. By contrast, Myanmar allocates nearly 3.8% of GDP to its military, even as its economic output lags behind its neighbours.
Malaysia and the Philippines rank among the higher spenders on education, at 3.6%, signalling a shared belief in human capital as a growth engine, despite much smaller GDP per capita compared to Singapore or Brunei.
Brunei’s 2016 figure stands out too: 4.4% on education, alongside 3.0% on defence – one of the highest ratios in Southeast Asia (though recent data remains scarce).
Data originally posted on the Voronoi app using IMF and World Bank figures.
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