The fastest times in the swimming events at the Southeast Asian Games are designated as the Southeast Asian Games records in swimming. The events are held in a long course (50 m) pool. All records were set in finals unless noted otherwise.
Singapore has historically proven to be a powerhouse in swimming, especially in Southeast Asia. As a result, most records are held by Singaporeans.
The 2009 Games were held in Vientiane, Laos where the records for 25 events were broken. Of these, 12 records were broken by Singapore, eight by Malaysia, two by the Philippines, and one each by Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam. However, most of these records were broken while non-textile swimsuits were legal for use between February 2008 and December 2009. They have since been banned in January 2010. To date, 5 records set using the non-textile swimsuits remain in the record books.
| Nation | Record tally | Men | Women | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | 10 | 11 | ||
| 12 | 7 | 5 | ||
| align=left | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
| align=left | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
| 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| align=left | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| Total | 40 | 20 | 20 |
The following lists athletes holding three or more records in Southeast Asian swimming.
| Record count | Name | Nationality | Events | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | Joseph Isaac Schooling | 100 m freestyle 100 m butterfly 200 m butterfly 200 m individual medley 4×100 m freestyle relay | ||
| 4 | Quah Zheng Wen | 100 m backstroke 200 m backstroke 4×100 m freestyle relay 4×100 m medley relay | ||
| 4 | Nguyễn Huy Hoàng | 400 m freestyle 800 m freestyle 1500 m freestyle 4×200 m freestyle relay |
The following lists athletes holding three or more records in Southeast Asian swimming.
| Record count | Name | Nationality | Events | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | Quah Ting Wen | 50 m freestyle 100 m freestyle 50 m butterfly 4×100 m freestyle relay 4×200 m freestyle relay 4×100 m medley relay | ||
| 5 | Nguyễn Thị Ánh Viên | 200 m freestyle 400 m freestyle 800 m freestyle 200 m individual medley 400 m individual medley | ||
| 4 | Quah Jing Wen | 200 m butterfly 4×100 m freestyle relay 4×200 m freestyle relay 4×100 m medley relay |