Consumption-based CO₂ emissions in South Korea
South Korea: Consumption-based CO₂ emissions was 708.87 million tonnes in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
708.87 million tonnes
Change on year
down 1.9%
World rank
8th
of 120 countries
All-time high
749.23 million tonnes
in 2018
All-time low
330.99 million tonnes
in 1990
Years of data
34
1990–2023
Consumption-based CO₂ emissions in South Korea, 1990–2023
Source: Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes.
Analysis
South Korea recorded 708.87 million tonnes for consumption-based co₂ emissions in 2023.
That represents a change of down 1.9% on the previous year and up 5.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, consumption-based co₂ emissions in South Korea peaked at 749.23 million tonnes in 2018 and was at its lowest, 330.99 million tonnes, in 1990.
That places South Korea 8th out of 120 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 34 years of available data.
Consumption-based CO₂ emissions in South Korea, year by year
| Year | tonnes | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 330.99 million tonnes | — |
| 1991 | 353.92 million tonnes | +6.9% |
| 1992 | 420.23 million tonnes | +18.7% |
| 1993 | 421.05 million tonnes | +0.2% |
| 1994 | 440.18 million tonnes | +4.5% |
| 1995 | 466.35 million tonnes | +5.9% |
| 1996 | 503.15 million tonnes | +7.9% |
| 1997 | 499.59 million tonnes | -0.7% |
| 1998 | 367.47 million tonnes | -26.4% |
| 1999 | 436.00 million tonnes | +18.7% |
| 2000 | 502.22 million tonnes | +15.2% |
| 2001 | 503.92 million tonnes | +0.3% |
| 2002 | 540.71 million tonnes | +7.3% |
| 2003 | 549.24 million tonnes | +1.6% |
| 2004 | 563.01 million tonnes | +2.5% |
| 2005 | 594.38 million tonnes | +5.6% |
| 2006 | 612.37 million tonnes | +3.0% |
| 2007 | 642.07 million tonnes | +4.9% |
| 2008 | 644.42 million tonnes | +0.4% |
| 2009 | 573.88 million tonnes | -10.9% |
| 2010 | 654.58 million tonnes | +14.1% |
| 2011 | 683.12 million tonnes | +4.4% |
| 2012 | 665.03 million tonnes | -2.6% |
| 2013 | 669.75 million tonnes | +0.7% |
| 2014 | 694.71 million tonnes | +3.7% |
| 2015 | 676.28 million tonnes | -2.7% |
| 2016 | 669.42 million tonnes | -1.0% |
| 2017 | 701.82 million tonnes | +4.8% |
| 2018 | 749.23 million tonnes | +6.8% |
| 2019 | 735.55 million tonnes | -1.8% |
| 2020 | 682.04 million tonnes | -7.3% |
| 2021 | 717.59 million tonnes | +5.2% |
| 2022 | 722.67 million tonnes | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 708.87 million tonnes | -1.9% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 708.87 million tonnes is above the median for high income countries, which is 77.36 million tonnes, 9.2× the median. (52 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 708.87 million tonnes is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 229.69 million tonnes, 3.1× the median. (16 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 423.89 million tonnes | 330.99 million tonnes | 503.15 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2000s | 572.62 million tonnes | 502.22 million tonnes | 644.42 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2010s | 689.95 million tonnes | 654.58 million tonnes | 749.23 million tonnes | 10 |
| 2020s | 707.79 million tonnes | 682.04 million tonnes | 722.67 million tonnes | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More climate change data for South Korea
- Spring temperature anomalies 1.1 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 0.7164 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month -0.8996 °C (2026)
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 0.2% (2100)
- Population, total, annual growth rate -0.1285 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population, total, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Urban population, annual growth rate -0.1214 % change on previous year (2025)
- Urban population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Urban population, per capita 0.8117 units per person (2025)
- Precipitation anomalies, annual growth rate -78.08 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is consumption-based co₂ emissions in South Korea?
- Consumption-based co₂ emissions in South Korea was 708.87 million tonnes in 2023, according to Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest consumption-based co₂ emissions recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 749.23 million tonnes in 2018.
- What is the lowest consumption-based co₂ emissions recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 330.99 million tonnes in 1990.
- How does South Korea rank for consumption-based co₂ emissions?
- South Korea ranks 8th out of 120 countries with data for 2023.
- Is consumption-based co₂ emissions rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Global Carbon Budget (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Consumption-based CO₂ emissions. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 34 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Annual consumption-based emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂), measured in tonnes.