Guide
What in-house Microsoft training costs in Malaysia — and how much HRD Corp pays
In-house training is priced per group per day, and HRD Corp reimburses up to RM10,500 per group for a full day. Here is how the arithmetic works.
Updated 25 September 2026
Search for the price of Excel or Power BI training in Malaysia and you mostly find per-seat prices for public classes. That is the right number if you are sending one person. It is the wrong number if you are training a team, because in-house training is not sold per seat at all: it is priced per training day, for the whole group, and the cost per person depends almost entirely on how many people are in the room.
This guide explains how that pricing works, what moves a quote up or down, and — most usefully for anyone who has to get a budget approved — how much of it HRD Corp will reimburse. The HRD Corp figures come from its Allowable Cost Matrix and are quoted with the version and date they were read.
How in-house training is priced
An in-house course is quoted as a price per training day for one group, delivered at your premises or a venue you choose. Whether eight people attend or twenty, the trainer’s day costs the same, so the quote is the same. That single fact drives everything else on this page.
A quote normally covers the trainer’s preparation and delivery days, customisation of exercises to your files, course materials and certificates of attendance. Travel is quoted separately when the trainer is not local to you — relevant for most of Sarawak and Sabah.
What moves the quote
Five things account for most of the difference between two quotes for what sounds like the same course.
| Factor | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Number of days | The main multiplier. A two-day Excel course costs roughly twice a one-day course. |
| Customisation | Building exercises on your own files takes preparation time, which is worth paying for: it is what makes the skills stick. |
| Trainer specialism | Power BI modelling, DAX and Power Automate governance need a more specialised trainer than a general Excel course. |
| Number of batches | Eighty people are trained as several groups, and each group is its own delivery day. |
| Location and travel | A trainer flying to Kuching or Kota Kinabalu adds airfare and accommodation, part of which HRD Corp allows to be claimed. |
What HRD Corp reimburses — the January 2026 figures
For a general in-house course, HRD Corp’s Allowable Cost Matrix caps the claimable course fee at RM10,500 per group for a full day of at least seven hours, and RM6,000 per group for a half day of up to four hours. The cap is per GROUP, not per person.
There must be at least 2 trainees in the group for face-to-face in-house training, and if there are fewer than 5 the cap is prorated: HRD Corp’s own example is RM10,500 divided by 5 trainees, or RM2,100 per trainee.
The table below shows the maximum claimable course fee for common course lengths and group sizes. It is a ceiling on what HRD Corp pays, not a price.
| Group size | 1 day | 2 days | Ceiling per person, 2 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 people | RM6,300 | RM12,600 | RM4,200 |
| 8 people | RM10,500 | RM21,000 | RM2,625 |
| 15 people | RM10,500 | RM21,000 | RM1,400 |
| 25 people | RM10,500 | RM21,000 | RM840 |
What a full room does to the cost per person
Because the course fee is per group, the per-person cost falls quickly as the group grows. At the HRD Corp ceiling, one full day works out to RM1,313 per person with 8 attendees, RM700 with 15 and RM420 with 25.
The practical limit is not arithmetic but teaching. Hands-on software training works best with a group small enough for the trainer to see every screen — around 15 to 20 is comfortable for Excel and Copilot, and a little fewer for Power BI. Beyond that, two batches serve people better than one crowded room.
Training in Sarawak and Sabah: what else can be claimed
East Malaysian employers often assume that bringing a trainer in from Kuala Lumpur makes in-house training uneconomic. HRD Corp’s cost matrix treats this directly: it states that “external trainers from other towns … will be allowed to claim for airfare”, including airport tax, administrative fee and fuel surcharge.
Trainers travelling to deliver in-house training can also claim a daily allowance under the same matrix — up to RM250 a day within 100km, or RM500 a day at 100km or more, or the actual rate paid, whichever is lower. Those items sit alongside the course-fee cap rather than inside it.
When the grant application has to go in
The grant is applied for before the training, not after. HRD Corp’s matrix says employers must submit grant applications at least one day before the training starts, and the application names the course, the provider, the dates and the participants.
One day is the rule, not a sensible plan. In practice, allow enough time to agree the course and dates, confirm the provider’s and course’s registration, and get internal approval — a few weeks is comfortable, and more in the last quarter, when many employers move to use their levy before the year ends.
Questions
›How much does Excel training cost in Malaysia?
For one person, public classes are priced per participant per day. For a team, in-house training is priced per group per day, so the cost per person depends on how many attend.
If your company pays the HRD Corp levy, the claimable course fee for a general in-house course is capped at RM10,500 per group for a full day. Request a quote with your group size and dates to get an exact figure.
›Is the HRD Corp amount per person or per group?
For in-house training it is per group: up to RM10,500 per full day however many people attend, with proration below 5 trainees. For public classes it is per participant, up to RM1,750 per day.
›Can a government agency claim HRD Corp funding?
No. Federal and state government agencies do not pay the HRD Corp levy, so agency training is paid from the department’s own training allocation. Government-linked companies and private employers registered with HRD Corp can claim.
›Are certification exam fees covered?
The course fee and the certification exam are separate. Microsoft certification exams are booked and paid separately through Microsoft’s exam provider. Whether an exam fee can be included in a claim depends on the scheme and course category, so confirm it with HRD Corp before assuming it.
›Does SST apply?
Where service tax applies to training, HRD Corp’s matrix states it is claimable, provided the total does not exceed the maximum claimable amount.
Get a scoped quote
Tell us the course, your team size, where you are and whether you pay the HRD Corp levy. Within one working day you get a suggested course shape, next steps on a quote, and how to claim it through HRD Corp.