Population, total in South Korea
South Korea: Population, total was 51.68 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
51.68 million
Change on year
down 0.1%
World rank
29th
of 218 countries
All-time high
51.84 million
in 2020
All-time low
25.01 million
in 1960
Years of data
66
1960–2025
Population, total in South Korea, 1960–2025
Source: World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
South Korea recorded 51.68 million for population, total in 2025.
The figure is down 0.1% on the previous year and up 1.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population, total in South Korea peaked at 51.84 million in 2020 and was at its lowest, 25.01 million, in 1960.
That places South Korea 29th out of 218 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Population, total in South Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 25.01 million | — |
| 1961 | 25.77 million | +3.0% |
| 1962 | 26.51 million | +2.9% |
| 1963 | 27.26 million | +2.8% |
| 1964 | 27.98 million | +2.7% |
| 1965 | 28.70 million | +2.6% |
| 1966 | 29.44 million | +2.5% |
| 1967 | 30.13 million | +2.4% |
| 1968 | 30.84 million | +2.3% |
| 1969 | 31.54 million | +2.3% |
| 1970 | 32.24 million | +2.2% |
| 1971 | 32.88 million | +2.0% |
| 1972 | 33.51 million | +1.9% |
| 1973 | 34.10 million | +1.8% |
| 1974 | 34.69 million | +1.7% |
| 1975 | 35.28 million | +1.7% |
| 1976 | 35.85 million | +1.6% |
| 1977 | 36.41 million | +1.6% |
| 1978 | 36.97 million | +1.5% |
| 1979 | 37.53 million | +1.5% |
| 1980 | 38.12 million | +1.6% |
| 1981 | 38.72 million | +1.6% |
| 1982 | 39.33 million | +1.6% |
| 1983 | 39.91 million | +1.5% |
| 1984 | 40.41 million | +1.2% |
| 1985 | 40.81 million | +1.0% |
| 1986 | 41.21 million | +1.0% |
| 1987 | 41.62 million | +1.0% |
| 1988 | 42.03 million | +1.0% |
| 1989 | 42.45 million | +1.0% |
| 1990 | 42.87 million | +1.0% |
| 1991 | 43.30 million | +1.0% |
| 1992 | 43.75 million | +1.0% |
| 1993 | 44.19 million | +1.0% |
| 1994 | 44.64 million | +1.0% |
| 1995 | 45.09 million | +1.0% |
| 1996 | 45.52 million | +1.0% |
| 1997 | 45.95 million | +0.9% |
| 1998 | 46.29 million | +0.7% |
| 1999 | 46.62 million | +0.7% |
| 2000 | 47.01 million | +0.8% |
| 2001 | 47.37 million | +0.8% |
| 2002 | 47.64 million | +0.6% |
| 2003 | 47.89 million | +0.5% |
| 2004 | 48.08 million | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 48.18 million | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 48.44 million | +0.5% |
| 2007 | 48.68 million | +0.5% |
| 2008 | 49.05 million | +0.8% |
| 2009 | 49.31 million | +0.5% |
| 2010 | 49.55 million | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 49.94 million | +0.8% |
| 2012 | 50.20 million | +0.5% |
| 2013 | 50.43 million | +0.5% |
| 2014 | 50.75 million | +0.6% |
| 2015 | 51.01 million | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 51.22 million | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 51.36 million | +0.3% |
| 2018 | 51.59 million | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 51.76 million | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 51.84 million | +0.1% |
| 2021 | 51.77 million | -0.1% |
| 2022 | 51.67 million | -0.2% |
| 2023 | 51.71 million | +0.1% |
| 2024 | 51.75 million | +0.1% |
| 2025 | 51.68 million | -0.1% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 51.68 million is above the median for high income countries, which is 2.97 million, 17.4× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 51.68 million is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 1.42 million, 36.4× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 28.32 million | 25.01 million | 31.54 million | 10 |
| 1970s | 34.95 million | 32.24 million | 37.53 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 40.46 million | 38.12 million | 42.45 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 44.82 million | 42.87 million | 46.62 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 48.17 million | 47.01 million | 49.31 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 50.78 million | 49.55 million | 51.76 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 51.74 million | 51.67 million | 51.84 million | 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, total in South Korea?
- Population, total in South Korea was 51.68 million in 2025, according to World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest population, total recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 51.84 million in 2020.
- What is the lowest population, total recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 25.01 million in 1960.
- How does South Korea rank for population, total?
- South Korea ranks 29th out of 218 countries with data for 2025.
- Is population, total rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Population, total. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Total population is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship. The values shown are midyear estimates.