Japan vs South Korea: Tonne-kilometers of air freight
Japan
8.47 billion million ton-km
in 2023
South Korea
12.29 billion million ton-km
in 2023
Japan rank
8th
South Korea rank
6th
Tonne-kilometers of air freight over time
- Japan
- South Korea
How they compare
South Korea currently reports 12.29 billion million ton-km against 8.47 billion million ton-km in Japan, a difference of 3.82 billion million ton-km.
That makes South Korea's figure about 1.5 times Japan's.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 54 shared years of data; in 1970 it was Japan ahead.
Japan ranks 8th and South Korea ranks 6th of 180 countries.
Across the 6 decades both report, Japan averaged higher in 4 and South Korea in 2.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Japan | South Korea | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 893.34 million million ton-km | 263.73 million million ton-km | 629.61 million million ton-km | Japan |
| 1980s | 3.24 billion million ton-km | 1.40 billion million ton-km | 1.84 billion million ton-km | Japan |
| 1990s | 6.36 billion million ton-km | 5.27 billion million ton-km | 1.09 billion million ton-km | Japan |
| 2000s | 8.56 billion million ton-km | 8.55 billion million ton-km | 10.44 million million ton-km | Japan |
| 2010s | 8.47 billion million ton-km | 11.56 billion million ton-km | 3.09 billion million ton-km | South Korea |
| 2020s | 9.24 billion million ton-km | 13.47 billion million ton-km | 4.23 billion million ton-km | South Korea |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher tonne-kilometers of air freight, Japan or South Korea?
- South Korea, at 12.29 billion million ton-km against 8.47 billion million ton-km in Japan as of 2023.
- What is the difference in tonne-kilometers of air freight between Japan and South Korea?
- 3.82 billion million ton-km, with South Korea ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and South Korea?
- 54 years are reported by both, from 1970 to 2023.
- How do Japan and South Korea rank globally for tonne-kilometers of air freight?
- Japan ranks 8th and South Korea ranks 6th of 180 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Tonne-kilometers of air freight. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Air freight is the volume of freight, express, and diplomatic bags carried on each flight stage (operation of an aircraft from takeoff to its next landing), measured in metric tonnes times kilometers traveled.