Aim: Electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) plays an important role in preventing smoking-induced diseases. However, the majority of people are not aware of e-cigarette. The present study attempts to characterise awareness of e-cigarette in the overall Malaysian population and to explore its associated factors. Materials and methods: The data is obtained from the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS). The survey consists of a large sample size (n ¼ 4176). In order to examine sociodemographic differences in the likelihood of being aware of e-cigarette, multivariable logistic regressions stratified by ethnic groups are used. Results: Age, gender, education, ethnicity and cigarette smoking are independently associated with awareness of e-cigarette. Older individuals display a lower likelihood of being aware of e-cigarette than younger individuals (aOR: 0.977). Males are more likely to be aware of e-cigarette than females (aOR: 2.537). A lower likelihood of being aware of e-cigarette is reported by individuals with primary-level (aOR: 0.173) and secondary-level education (aOR: 0.389). Awareness of e-cigarette is higher among smokers (aOR: 1.438). Conclusion: Considering the sociodemographic variations in awareness of e-cigarette, policy makers should develop an intervention measure in efforts to provide people with more information on ecigarette with a focus on those who likely to be unaware of e-cigarette.