Statizoid

Population in North Korea

North Korea: Population was 26.42 million people in 2023. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2023)
26.42 million people
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
55th
of 238 countries
All-time high
26.42 million people
in 2023
All-time low
900,000 people
in 1000
Years of data
241
1000–2023

Population in North Korea, 1000–2023

010.0M20.0M30.0M100015112023

Source: HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in people.

Analysis

The most recent figure for population in North Korea is 26.42 million people, measured in 2023. That is the highest value across all 241 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 4.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, population in North Korea peaked at 26.42 million people in 2023 and was at its lowest, 900,000 people, in 1000.

North Korea ranks 55th of 238 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1000s 900,000 people 900,000 people 900,000 people 1
1100s 1.08 million people 1.08 million people 1.08 million people 1
1200s 1.44 million people 1.44 million people 1.44 million people 1
1300s 1.08 million people 1.08 million people 1.08 million people 1
1400s 1.26 million people 1.26 million people 1.26 million people 1
1500s 1.44 million people 1.44 million people 1.44 million people 1
1600s 1.80 million people 1.80 million people 1.80 million people 1
1700s 2.25 million people 2.25 million people 2.25 million people 1
1710s 2.47 million people 2.47 million people 2.47 million people 1
1720s 2.60 million people 2.60 million people 2.60 million people 1
1730s 2.74 million people 2.74 million people 2.74 million people 1
1740s 2.88 million people 2.88 million people 2.88 million people 1
1750s 3.03 million people 3.03 million people 3.03 million people 1
1760s 3.19 million people 3.19 million people 3.19 million people 1
1770s 3.36 million people 3.36 million people 3.36 million people 1
1780s 3.54 million people 3.54 million people 3.54 million people 1
1790s 3.73 million people 3.73 million people 3.73 million people 1
1800s 4.34 million people 4.34 million people 4.34 million people 10
1810s 4.35 million people 4.34 million people 4.35 million people 10
1820s 4.36 million people 4.35 million people 4.37 million people 10
1830s 4.39 million people 4.38 million people 4.41 million people 10
1840s 4.43 million people 4.41 million people 4.44 million people 10
1850s 4.51 million people 4.44 million people 4.58 million people 10
1860s 4.66 million people 4.60 million people 4.74 million people 10
1870s 4.85 million people 4.75 million people 4.95 million people 10
1880s 5.07 million people 4.97 million people 5.17 million people 10
1890s 5.30 million people 5.20 million people 5.41 million people 10
1900s 5.54 million people 5.43 million people 5.67 million people 10
1910s 6.19 million people 5.72 million people 6.69 million people 10
1920s 7.33 million people 6.80 million people 7.89 million people 10
1930s 8.65 million people 8.02 million people 9.30 million people 10
1940s 10.20 million people 9.46 million people 10.95 million people 10
1950s 10.68 million people 10.18 million people 11.45 million people 10
1960s 13.13 million people 11.72 million people 14.77 million people 10
1970s 16.72 million people 15.17 million people 17.98 million people 10
1980s 19.49 million people 18.24 million people 20.80 million people 10
1990s 22.42 million people 21.11 million people 23.50 million people 10
2000s 24.30 million people 23.67 million people 24.88 million people 10
2010s 25.51 million people 24.99 million people 26.04 million people 10
2020s 26.28 million people 26.14 million people 26.42 million people 4

Countries ranked near North Korea

  1. 52 Cameroon 28.37 million people compare
  2. 53 Venezuela 28.30 million people compare
  3. 54 Australia 26.45 million people compare
  4. 56 Niger 26.16 million people compare
  5. 57 Mali 23.77 million people compare
  6. 58 Syria 23.59 million people compare

See the full ranking of 239 places →

More population data for North Korea

All data for North Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is population in North Korea?
Population in North Korea was 26.42 million people in 2023, according to HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
What is the highest population recorded in North Korea?
The highest recorded value was 26.42 million people in 2023.
What is the lowest population recorded in North Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 900,000 people in 1000.
How does North Korea rank for population?
North Korea ranks 55th out of 238 countries with data for 2023.
Is population rising or falling in North Korea?
Over the last ten years it is up 4.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this North Korea data come from?
The figures come from HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 241 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Population
Unit
people
Source
HYDE (2023); Gapminder (2022); UN WPP (2024) – with major processing by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
239 places, 51,002 data points, 1000–2023
Last refreshed

Population by country, available from 10,000 BCE to 2023, based on data and estimates from different sources.