| Source | UN (World Population Prospects 2024) |
| Date | 25 Jun 2025 |
As of 2025, the population of South Korea is projected at 51.67 million, compared to 51.72 million in 2024. It ranks 13th in Asia and 29th in the world. The population growth rate in 2025 is projected at -0.12 percent, the 185th highest among 237 countries and dependent territories.
There are 25.77 million males and 25.89 million females in South Korea. The percentage of the male population is 49.89%, compared to 50.11% of the female population. South Korea has 117k more females than males. The sex ratio in South Korea in 2025 will be 99.547 males per 100 females. South Korea is in the 153rd position in terms of the female-to-male ratio.
| Year | Population | Growth (%) | M per 100 F | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male | Female | Total | |||
| 1950 | 10,089,463 | 9,667,859 | 19,757,321 | 0.00 | 104.361 |
| 1955 | 11,129,887 | 10,995,216 | 22,125,103 | 3.30 | 101.225 |
| 1960 | 13,142,885 | 12,972,495 | 26,115,379 | 3.09 | 101.313 |
| 1965 | 14,793,712 | 14,490,626 | 29,284,338 | 1.73 | 102.092 |
| 1970 | 16,408,688 | 16,133,509 | 32,542,197 | 2.15 | 101.706 |
| 1975 | 18,172,463 | 17,703,280 | 35,875,743 | 1.49 | 102.650 |
| 1980 | 19,294,155 | 18,846,952 | 38,141,107 | 1.12 | 102.373 |
| 1985 | 20,795,318 | 20,353,645 | 41,148,963 | 1.29 | 102.170 |
| 1990 | 22,397,804 | 21,683,623 | 44,081,427 | 1.16 | 103.294 |
| 1995 | 23,136,768 | 22,231,658 | 45,368,425 | 0.51 | 104.071 |
| 2000 | 23,887,084 | 22,879,577 | 46,766,661 | 0.59 | 104.404 |
| 2005 | 24,355,325 | 23,496,319 | 47,851,644 | 0.29 | 103.656 |
| 2010 | 24,755,452 | 24,013,880 | 48,769,332 | 0.51 | 103.088 |
| 2015 | 25,576,742 | 25,407,170 | 50,983,912 | 0.83 | 100.667 |
| 2020 | 25,903,431 | 25,955,050 | 51,858,482 | 0.13 | 99.801 |
| 2021 | 25,876,232 | 25,972,166 | 51,848,397 | -0.17 | 99.631 |
| 2022 | 25,840,655 | 25,941,857 | 51,782,512 | -0.09 | 99.610 |
| 2023 | 25,831,859 | 25,916,880 | 51,748,739 | -0.04 | 99.672 |
| 2024 | 25,814,137 | 25,903,453 | 51,717,590 | -0.08 | 99.655 |
| 2025 | 25,774,811 | 25,892,218 | 51,667,029 | -0.12 | 99.547 |
| Year | Life expectancy | Median age | Fertility rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 22.226 | 17.686 | 6.063 |
| 1955 | 48.353 | 17.868 | 6.169 |
| 1960 | 53.757 | 18.321 | 5.994 |
| 1965 | 55.784 | 17.517 | 4.887 |
| 1970 | 62.175 | 17.695 | 4.459 |
| 1975 | 64.667 | 18.847 | 3.313 |
| 1980 | 64.848 | 20.923 | 2.734 |
| 1985 | 68.408 | 23.254 | 1.705 |
| 1990 | 70.994 | 25.806 | 1.603 |
| 1995 | 73.375 | 28.336 | 1.646 |
| 2000 | 76.235 | 30.653 | 1.467 |
| 2005 | 78.449 | 33.551 | 1.115 |
| 2010 | 80.717 | 36.590 | 1.226 |
| 2015 | 82.540 | 39.867 | 1.202 |
| 2020 | 83.675 | 42.759 | 0.812 |
| 2021 | 83.852 | 43.366 | 0.783 |
| 2022 | 82.727 | 43.944 | 0.780 |
| 2023 | 84.329 | 44.486 | 0.720 |
| 2024 | 84.434 | 45.050 | 0.734 |
| 2025 | 84.535 | 45.619 | 0.749 |
| Year | Total | Crude(per 1000) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Death | Birth | Crude death | Crude birth | |
| 1950 | 931,034 | 784,803 | 47.123 | 39.722 |
| 1955 | 363,086 | 942,519 | 16.411 | 42.600 |
| 1960 | 338,650 | 1,098,755 | 12.967 | 42.073 |
| 1965 | 334,413 | 988,466 | 11.420 | 33.754 |
| 1970 | 260,575 | 987,604 | 8.007 | 30.348 |
| 1975 | 252,398 | 838,408 | 7.035 | 23.370 |
| 1980 | 278,898 | 853,589 | 7.312 | 22.380 |
| 1985 | 252,680 | 686,800 | 6.141 | 16.691 |
| 1990 | 252,318 | 684,376 | 5.724 | 15.525 |
| 1995 | 252,294 | 692,785 | 5.561 | 15.270 |
| 2000 | 239,373 | 599,446 | 5.118 | 12.818 |
| 2005 | 244,403 | 432,815 | 5.108 | 9.045 |
| 2010 | 254,109 | 449,665 | 5.210 | 9.220 |
| 2015 | 278,964 | 424,787 | 5.472 | 8.332 |
| 2020 | 317,301 | 270,034 | 6.119 | 5.207 |
| 2021 | 328,052 | 259,300 | 6.327 | 5.001 |
| 2022 | 390,625 | 256,588 | 7.544 | 4.955 |
| 2023 | 345,502 | 236,394 | 6.677 | 4.568 |
| 2024 | 357,948 | 240,982 | 6.921 | 4.660 |
| 2025 | 371,713 | 245,858 | 7.194 | 4.759 |
| Year | Population | Urban (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Urban | Rural | ||
| 1950 | 4,102,424 | 15,108,961 | 21.354 |
| 1955 | 5,251,885 | 16,279,446 | 24.392 |
| 1960 | 7,022,058 | 18,318,860 | 27.710 |
| 1965 | 9,351,713 | 19,555,358 | 32.351 |
| 1970 | 13,110,502 | 19,098,812 | 40.704 |
| 1975 | 16,997,155 | 18,389,352 | 48.033 |
| 1980 | 21,582,191 | 16,468,233 | 56.720 |
| 1985 | 26,474,831 | 14,333,738 | 64.876 |
| 1990 | 31,696,103 | 11,227,028 | 73.844 |
| 1995 | 35,441,319 | 9,857,292 | 78.239 |
| 2000 | 37,729,427 | 9,656,885 | 79.621 |
| 2005 | 39,622,010 | 9,086,487 | 81.345 |
| 2010 | 40,601,614 | 8,951,241 | 81.936 |
| 2015 | 41,301,851 | 9,291,811 | 81.634 |
| 2020 | 41,934,110 | 9,572,865 | 81.414 |
| 2021 | 42,063,715 | 9,602,940 | 81.414 |
| 2022 | 42,193,408 | 9,623,822 | 81.427 |
| 2023 | 42,323,569 | 9,635,539 | 81.456 |
| 2024 | 42,454,846 | 9,638,207 | 81.498 |
| Age group | Male | Female | Total | M per 100 F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Persons | Share (%) | ||||
| 00-04 | 640,524 | 607,612 | 1,248,137 | 2.42 | 105.417 |
| 05-09 | 896,893 | 853,274 | 1,750,167 | 3.39 | 105.112 |
| 10-14 | 1,166,040 | 1,108,002 | 2,274,042 | 4.40 | 105.238 |
| 15-19 | 1,189,895 | 1,118,865 | 2,308,760 | 4.47 | 106.348 |
| 20-24 | 1,410,681 | 1,295,444 | 2,706,126 | 5.24 | 108.896 |
| 25-29 | 1,814,399 | 1,636,254 | 3,450,653 | 6.68 | 110.887 |
| 30-34 | 1,955,975 | 1,692,059 | 3,648,034 | 7.06 | 115.597 |
| 35-39 | 1,732,895 | 1,555,678 | 3,288,573 | 6.36 | 111.392 |
| 40-44 | 1,984,486 | 1,862,612 | 3,847,098 | 7.45 | 106.543 |
| 45-49 | 1,970,513 | 1,897,341 | 3,867,854 | 7.49 | 103.857 |
| 50-54 | 2,189,204 | 2,138,319 | 4,327,523 | 8.38 | 102.380 |
| 55-59 | 2,145,890 | 2,154,441 | 4,300,331 | 8.32 | 99.603 |
| 60-64 | 2,056,173 | 2,089,438 | 4,145,610 | 8.02 | 98.408 |
| 65-69 | 1,784,149 | 1,901,899 | 3,686,048 | 7.13 | 93.809 |
| 70-74 | 1,170,820 | 1,327,939 | 2,498,759 | 4.84 | 88.168 |
| 75-79 | 803,368 | 987,499 | 1,790,867 | 3.47 | 81.354 |
| 80-84 | 524,351 | 798,533 | 1,322,884 | 2.56 | 65.664 |
| 85-89 | 254,362 | 534,852 | 789,215 | 1.53 | 47.557 |
| 90-94 | 73,784 | 250,904 | 324,688 | 0.63 | 29.407 |
| 95-99 | 9,851 | 70,397 | 80,248 | 0.16 | 13.993 |
| 100+ | 559 | 10,856 | 11,415 | 0.02 | 5.149 |
| Total | 25,774,812 | 25,892,218 | 51,667,032 | 99.547 | |