Historical population data in Korea

Korea: Historical population data was 51.68 million Persons in 2025. β–² Rising

Latest (2025)
51.68 million Persons
Change on year
down 0.1%
Rank
1st
of 9 groups
All-time high
51.84 million Persons
in 2020
All-time low
19.76 million Persons
in 1950
Years of data
76
1950–2025

Historical population data in Korea, 1950–2025

020.0M40.0M60.0M195019872025

Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Persons.

Analysis

In 2025, historical population data in Korea stood at 51.68 million Persons.

The figure is down 0.1% on the previous year and up 1.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, historical population data in Korea peaked at 51.84 million Persons in 2020 and was at its lowest, 19.76 million Persons, in 1950.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 76 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 22.05 million Persons 19.76 million Persons 25.30 million Persons 10
1960s 28.32 million Persons 25.01 million Persons 31.54 million Persons 10
1970s 34.95 million Persons 32.24 million Persons 37.53 million Persons 10
1980s 40.46 million Persons 38.12 million Persons 42.45 million Persons 10
1990s 44.82 million Persons 42.87 million Persons 46.62 million Persons 10
2000s 48.17 million Persons 47.01 million Persons 49.31 million Persons 10
2010s 50.78 million Persons 49.55 million Persons 51.76 million Persons 10
2020s 51.74 million Persons 51.67 million Persons 51.84 million Persons 6

Countries ranked near Korea

  1. 1 India 1.46 billion Persons compare
  2. 2 China (People’s Republic of) 1.42 billion Persons compare
  3. 3 OECD 1.41 billion Persons compare
  4. 4 United States 341.79 million Persons compare

See the full ranking of 56 places β†’

More population data for Korea

All data for Korea β†’

Frequently asked questions

What is historical population data in Korea?
Historical population data in Korea was 51.68 million Persons in 2025, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
What is the highest historical population data recorded in Korea?
The highest recorded value was 51.84 million Persons in 2020.
What is the lowest historical population data recorded in Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 19.76 million Persons in 1950.
How does Korea rank for historical population data?
Korea ranks 1st out of 9 groups with data for 2025.
Is historical population data rising or falling in Korea?
Over the last ten years it is up 1.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Korea data come from?
The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Historical population data. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Historical population data in Korea. Statizoid, drawing on Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Retrieved 20 August 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/stat/historical-population-data/korea/

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About this data

Indicator
Historical population data
Unit
Persons
Source
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Licence
OECD Terms and Conditions (attribution required)
Coverage
56 places, 4,256 data points, 1950–2025
Last refreshed

This dataset presents annual population data from 1961 by sex and five year age groups as well as the share of children, youth, the elderly, old-age and total dependency ratios. The data is available for all member countries as well as for the EU27 and G20 countries, Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa and the World total. The data refer to mid-year estimates of the population. See country details in Historical population metadata.