Adoption of communication technologies in North Korea

North Korea: Adoption of communication technologies was 1.18 million in 2022. ▲ Rising

Latest (2022)
1.18 million
Change on year
up 0.0%
World rank
62nd
of 212 countries
All-time high
1.18 million
in 2022
All-time low
500,000
in 1983
Years of data
39
1983–2022

Adoption of communication technologies in North Korea, 1983–2022

0250.0k500.0k750.0k1.0M1.2M1983200220221983: 500.0k1984: 500.0k1985: 500.0k1986: 500.0k1987: 500.0k1988: 500.0k1989: 500.0k1990: 500.0k1991: 500.0k1992: 500.0k1993: 500.0k1994: 500.0k1995: 500.0k1996: 500.0k1997: 500.0k1998: 500.0k1999: 500.0k2000: 500.0k2001: 860.0k2002: 916.0k2003: 980.0k2004: 1.0M2005: 1.0M2006: 1.0M2007: 1.2M2008: 1.2M2009: 1.2M2010: 1.2M2011: 1.2M2012: 1.2M2013: 1.2M2014: 1.2M2015: 1.2M2016: 1.2M2017: 1.2M2019: 1.2M2020: 1.2M2021: 1.2M2022: 1.2M

Source: International Telecommunication Union (ITU), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.

Analysis

North Korea recorded 1.18 million for adoption of communication technologies in 2022. That is the highest value across all 39 years on record.

That represents a change of up 0.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, adoption of communication technologies in North Korea peaked at 1.18 million in 2022 and was at its lowest, 500,000, in 1983.

That places North Korea 62nd out of 212 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 39 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 500,000 500,000 500,000 7
1990s 500,000 500,000 500,000 10
2000s 979,600 500,000 1.18 million 10
2010s 1.18 million 1.18 million 1.18 million 9
2020s 1.18 million 1.18 million 1.18 million 3

Countries ranked near North Korea

  1. 59 Ecuador 1.22 million compare
  2. 60 Libya 1.22 million compare
  3. 61 Uruguay 1.21 million compare
  4. 63 Czechia 1.16 million compare
  5. 64 Dominican Republic 1.15 million compare
  6. 65 Croatia 1.10 million compare

See the full ranking of 212 places →

More reference data data for North Korea

All data for North Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is adoption of communication technologies in North Korea?
Adoption of communication technologies in North Korea was 1.18 million in 2022, according to International Telecommunication Union (ITU), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest adoption of communication technologies recorded in North Korea?
The highest recorded value was 1.18 million in 2022.
What is the lowest adoption of communication technologies recorded in North Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 500,000 in 1983.
How does North Korea rank for adoption of communication technologies?
North Korea ranks 62nd out of 212 countries with data for 2022.
Is adoption of communication technologies rising or falling in North Korea?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this North Korea data come from?
The figures come from International Telecommunication Union (ITU), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Adoption of communication technologies. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 39 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Adoption of communication technologies
Source
International Telecommunication Union (ITU), via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
212 places, 11,803 data points, 1960–2024
Last refreshed