Population growth in South Korea
South Korea: Population growth was -0.1% in 2025. ◆ Volatile
Population growth in South Korea, 1961–2025
Source: World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), note: Derived from total population, publisher: UN Population Division. Measured in annual %.
Analysis
In 2025, population growth in South Korea stood at -0.1%.
The figure is down 273.0% on the previous year and down 124.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population growth in South Korea peaked at 3.0% in 1961 and was at its lowest, -0.2%, in 2022.
That places South Korea 182nd out of 218 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Population growth in South Korea, year by year
| Year | annual % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 3.0% | — |
| 1962 | 2.9% | -3.6% |
| 1963 | 2.8% | -2.6% |
| 1964 | 2.6% | -6.1% |
| 1965 | 2.5% | -2.8% |
| 1966 | 2.5% | -1.1% |
| 1967 | 2.3% | -7.1% |
| 1968 | 2.3% | -0.6% |
| 1969 | 2.3% | -2.5% |
| 1970 | 2.2% | -3.5% |
| 1971 | 2.0% | -9.7% |
| 1972 | 1.9% | -4.8% |
| 1973 | 1.8% | -5.7% |
| 1974 | 1.7% | -3.1% |
| 1975 | 1.7% | -1.8% |
| 1976 | 1.6% | -5.1% |
| 1977 | 1.6% | -2.4% |
| 1978 | 1.5% | -2.6% |
| 1979 | 1.5% | -0.2% |
| 1980 | 1.6% | +2.7% |
| 1981 | 1.6% | +0.1% |
| 1982 | 1.5% | -0.9% |
| 1983 | 1.5% | -4.6% |
| 1984 | 1.2% | -16.3% |
| 1985 | 1.0% | -20.2% |
| 1986 | 1.0% | +1.0% |
| 1987 | 1.0% | -1.0% |
| 1988 | 1.0% | -0.6% |
| 1989 | 1.0% | +1.0% |
| 1990 | 1.0% | -0.4% |
| 1991 | 1.0% | +0.5% |
| 1992 | 1.0% | +5.0% |
| 1993 | 1.0% | -2.2% |
| 1994 | 1.0% | -1.0% |
| 1995 | 1.0% | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 1.0% | -5.3% |
| 1997 | 0.9% | -1.6% |
| 1998 | 0.7% | -23.0% |
| 1999 | 0.7% | -1.5% |
| 2000 | 0.8% | +17.6% |
| 2001 | 0.8% | -8.2% |
| 2002 | 0.6% | -24.7% |
| 2003 | 0.5% | -10.3% |
| 2004 | 0.4% | -23.5% |
| 2005 | 0.2% | -46.5% |
| 2006 | 0.5% | +147.7% |
| 2007 | 0.5% | -3.8% |
| 2008 | 0.8% | +50.3% |
| 2009 | 0.5% | -32.2% |
| 2010 | 0.5% | -3.2% |
| 2011 | 0.8% | +54.3% |
| 2012 | 0.5% | -31.6% |
| 2013 | 0.5% | -13.4% |
| 2014 | 0.6% | +38.0% |
| 2015 | 0.5% | -16.1% |
| 2016 | 0.4% | -24.7% |
| 2017 | 0.3% | -29.2% |
| 2018 | 0.4% | +54.3% |
| 2019 | 0.3% | -19.8% |
| 2020 | 0.1% | -60.4% |
| 2021 | -0.1% | -193.4% |
| 2022 | -0.2% | +45.6% |
| 2023 | 0.1% | -141.3% |
| 2024 | 0.1% | -4.1% |
| 2025 | -0.1% | -273.0% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's -0.1% is below the median for high income countries, which is 0.4%. (85 countries reporting)
- South Korea's -0.1% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.6%. (37 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Population growth in South Korea changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | -273.0% | 0.1% | -0.1% |
| 2021 | -193.4% | 0.1% | -0.1% |
| 2006 | +147.7% | 0.2% | 0.5% |
| 2023 | +141.3% | -0.2% | 0.1% |
| 2011 | +54.3% | 0.5% | 0.8% |
| 2018 | +54.3% | 0.3% | 0.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2.6% | 2.3% | 3.0% | 9 |
| 1970s | 1.7% | 1.5% | 2.2% | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.2% | 1.0% | 1.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.9% | 0.7% | 1.0% | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.6% | 0.2% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.5% | 0.3% | 0.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | -0.0% | -0.2% | 0.1% | 6 |
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 population growth in South Korea?
- Population growth in South Korea was -0.1% in 2025, according to World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), note: Derived from total population, publisher: UN Population Division.
- What is the highest population growth recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 3.0% in 1961.
- What is the lowest population growth recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was -0.2% in 2022.
- How does South Korea rank for population growth?
- South Korea ranks 182nd out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is population growth rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 124.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), note: Derived from total population, publisher: UN Population Division, published as part of Population growth (annual %). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Annual population growth rate for year t is the exponential rate of growth of midyear population from year t-1 to t, expressed as a percentage. Population is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship.