Military personnel as a share of total population in North Korea
North Korea: Military personnel as a share of total population was 4.86 in 2022. ▲ Rising
Latest (2022)
4.86
Change on year
down 0.4%
World rank
2nd
of 194 countries
All-time high
5.89
in 1990
All-time low
0.6237
in 1949
Years of data
75
1948–2022
Military personnel as a share of total population in North Korea, 1948–2022
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
North Korea recorded 4.86 for military personnel as a share of total population in 2022.
That represents a change of down 0.4% on the previous year and up 1.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military personnel as a share of total population in North Korea peaked at 5.89 in 1990 and was at its lowest, 0.6237, in 1949.
That places North Korea 2nd out of 194 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 75 years of available data.
Military personnel as a share of total population in North Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1948 | 2.13 | — |
| 1949 | 0.6237 | -70.8% |
| 1950 | 1.26 | +102.8% |
| 1951 | 1.1 | -13.0% |
| 1952 | 2.39 | +117.3% |
| 1953 | 2.99 | +25.0% |
| 1954 | 3.21 | +7.5% |
| 1955 | 3.39 | +5.5% |
| 1956 | 3.44 | +1.5% |
| 1957 | 3.61 | +4.9% |
| 1958 | 3.68 | +1.9% |
| 1959 | 3.74 | +1.6% |
| 1960 | 3.8 | +1.6% |
| 1961 | 3.59 | -5.4% |
| 1962 | 3.41 | -5.1% |
| 1963 | 3.08 | -9.6% |
| 1964 | 3.09 | +0.2% |
| 1965 | 3.13 | +1.4% |
| 1966 | 3.07 | -1.9% |
| 1967 | 2.97 | -3.4% |
| 1968 | 3.07 | +3.4% |
| 1969 | 2.97 | -3.4% |
| 1970 | 3.07 | +3.4% |
| 1971 | 3.06 | -0.4% |
| 1972 | 3.04 | -0.7% |
| 1973 | 3.02 | -0.6% |
| 1974 | 2.95 | -2.4% |
| 1975 | 2.88 | -2.2% |
| 1976 | 3.01 | +4.3% |
| 1977 | 3.08 | +2.2% |
| 1978 | 3.68 | +19.7% |
| 1979 | 3.97 | +7.9% |
| 1980 | 3.96 | -0.3% |
| 1981 | 4.29 | +8.2% |
| 1982 | 4.3 | +0.4% |
| 1983 | 4.26 | -1.1% |
| 1984 | 4.2 | -1.4% |
| 1985 | 4.14 | -1.4% |
| 1986 | 4.36 | +5.4% |
| 1987 | 4.3 | -1.4% |
| 1988 | 4.26 | -1.0% |
| 1989 | 5.19 | +21.7% |
| 1990 | 5.89 | +13.6% |
| 1991 | 5.8 | -1.6% |
| 1992 | 5.71 | -1.6% |
| 1993 | 5.15 | -9.8% |
| 1994 | 5.06 | -1.7% |
| 1995 | 4.98 | -1.6% |
| 1996 | 4.9 | -1.6% |
| 1997 | 4.82 | -1.6% |
| 1998 | 4.28 | -11.1% |
| 1999 | 4.22 | -1.5% |
| 2000 | 4.39 | +4.0% |
| 2001 | 4.67 | +6.5% |
| 2002 | 4.65 | -0.4% |
| 2003 | 4.61 | -0.9% |
| 2004 | 4.63 | +0.3% |
| 2005 | 4.64 | +0.4% |
| 2006 | 4.61 | -0.7% |
| 2007 | 4.59 | -0.6% |
| 2008 | 4.56 | -0.5% |
| 2009 | 4.54 | -0.5% |
| 2010 | 4.51 | -0.5% |
| 2011 | 4.83 | +7.0% |
| 2012 | 4.81 | -0.5% |
| 2013 | 4.76 | -0.9% |
| 2014 | 4.74 | -0.5% |
| 2015 | 4.71 | -0.5% |
| 2016 | 4.69 | -0.5% |
| 2017 | 4.61 | -1.7% |
| 2018 | 4.94 | +7.1% |
| 2019 | 4.92 | -0.4% |
| 2020 | 4.9 | -0.4% |
| 2021 | 4.88 | -0.4% |
| 2022 | 4.86 | -0.4% |
North Korea compared with similar countries
- North Korea's 4.86 is above the median for low income countries, which is 0.1517, 32.0× the median. (25 countries reporting)
- North Korea's 4.86 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.1865, 26.1× the median. (30 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Military personnel as a share of total population in North 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | +117.3% | 1.1 | 2.39 |
| 1950 | +102.8% | 0.6237 | 1.26 |
| 1949 | -70.8% | 2.13 | 0.6237 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1940s | 1.38 | 0.6237 | 2.13 | 2 |
| 1950s | 2.88 | 1.1 | 3.74 | 10 |
| 1960s | 3.22 | 2.97 | 3.8 | 10 |
| 1970s | 3.18 | 2.88 | 3.97 | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.33 | 3.96 | 5.19 | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.08 | 4.22 | 5.89 | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.59 | 4.39 | 4.67 | 10 |
| 2010s | 4.75 | 4.51 | 4.94 | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.88 | 4.86 | 4.9 | 3 |
Countries ranked near North Korea
More population data for North Korea
- Population regions with projections, annual growth rate -0.6538 % change on previous year (2100)
- Urban and rural population 2050, annual growth rate -2.81 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population long run with projections, annual growth rate -0.6538 % change on previous year (2100)
- Un population 2024 vs 2022, annual growth rate -0.5276 % change on previous year (2100)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 05 - Demographic estimates 25,807 Persons (2050)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 03 - Annual population 0.1188 Percent per annum (2030)
- Projected population under age 5, annual growth rate -0.7483 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population growth rate -0.656 (2100)
- Population density 162.05 (2100)
- Projected population under age 5 794,407 (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military personnel as a share of total population in North Korea?
- Military personnel as a share of total population in North Korea was 4.86 in 2022, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest military personnel as a share of total population recorded in North Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 5.89 in 1990.
- What is the lowest military personnel as a share of total population recorded in North Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.6237 in 1949.
- How does North Korea rank for military personnel as a share of total population?
- North Korea ranks 2nd out of 194 countries with data for 2022.
- Is military personnel as a share of total population rising or falling in North Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this North Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Military personnel as a share of total population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 75 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).