What is population in South Korea?

Population in South Korea was 51.75 million people in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.

What is the highest population recorded in South Korea?

The highest recorded value was 51.86 million people in 2020.

What is the lowest population recorded in South Korea?

The lowest recorded value was 19.76 million people in 1950.

How does South Korea rank for population?

South Korea ranks 29th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.

Is population rising or falling in South Korea?

Over the last ten years it is up 3.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.

Where does this South Korea data come from?

The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Population in South Korea

Name: Population in South Korea
Creator: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
License: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)

South Korea: Population was 51.75 million people in 2023. ▲ Rising

Latest (2023)

51.75 million people

Change on year

down 0.1%

World rank

29th

of 236 countries

All-time high

51.86 million people

in 2020

All-time low

19.76 million people

in 1950

Years of data

1950–2023

Population in South Korea, 1950–2023

Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.

Analysis

The most recent figure for population in South Korea is 51.75 million people, measured in 2023.

The figure is down 0.1% on the previous year and up 3.4% over ten years.

Over the whole period, population in South Korea peaked at 51.86 million people in 2020 and was at its lowest, 19.76 million people, in 1950.

That places South Korea 29th out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1950s	22.05 million people	19.76 million people	25.30 million people	10
1960s	29.00 million people	26.12 million people	31.85 million people	10
1970s	35.37 million people	32.54 million people	37.71 million people	10
1980s	40.84 million people	38.14 million people	43.52 million people	10
1990s	45.29 million people	44.08 million people	46.50 million people	10
2000s	47.73 million people	46.77 million people	48.55 million people	10
2010s	50.53 million people	48.77 million people	51.77 million people	10
2020s	51.81 million people	51.75 million people	51.86 million people	4

Countries ranked near South Korea

26 Kenya 55.34 million people compare
27 Myanmar 54.13 million people compare
28 Colombia 52.32 million people compare
30 Sudan 50.04 million people compare
31 Uganda 48.66 million people compare
32 Spain 47.91 million people compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More population data for South Korea

Population growth rate, by level of development -1.4% (2100)
Number of children under 5, by world region 599,530 people (2100)
Population density 223.86 people per km² (2100)
World population growth -1.4% (2100)
Total fertility rate vs. wanted fertility rate 0.748 births per woman (2024)
Refugees by country of asylum 4,241 people (2024)
Fertility rate vs. unmet need for contraception 0.748 births per woman (2024)
Total fertility rate vs. contraceptive prevalence 0.748 births per woman (2024)
Natural population growth rate -0.2% (2023)
Fertility rate: births per woman 0.72 live births per woman (2023)

All data for South Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is population in South Korea?: Population in South Korea was 51.75 million people in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest population recorded in South Korea?: The highest recorded value was 51.86 million people in 2020.
What is the lowest population recorded in South Korea?: The lowest recorded value was 19.76 million people in 1950.
How does South Korea rank for population?: South Korea ranks 29th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
Is population rising or falling in South Korea?: Over the last ten years it is up 3.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this South Korea data come from?: The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator: Population
Unit: people
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 236 places, 17,464 data points, 1950–2023
Last refreshed: 07 August 2026

The total population, measured on 1 July of the year shown.