Industry share of total emplyoment in South Korea

South Korea: Industry share of total emplyoment was 23.38 in 2025. ▼ Falling

Latest (2025)
23.38
Change on year
down 1.2%
World rank
52nd
of 186 countries
All-time high
37.16
in 1991
All-time low
23.38
in 2025
Years of data
35
1991–2025

Industry share of total emplyoment in South Korea, 1991–2025

0102030401991200820251991: 37.21992: 36.91993: 35.11994: 34.71995: 34.51996: 33.71997: 32.41998: 291999: 28.52000: 29.12001: 28.42002: 28.32003: 28.52004: 27.92005: 27.42006: 26.92007: 26.52008: 26.12009: 25.22010: 25.82011: 25.62012: 25.42013: 25.62014: 25.82015: 25.42016: 25.22017: 25.32018: 25.22019: 24.62020: 24.62021: 24.62022: 24.52023: 242024: 23.72025: 23.4

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

South Korea recorded 23.38 for industry share of total emplyoment in 2025. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.

That represents a change of down 1.2% on the previous year and down 8.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, industry share of total emplyoment in South Korea peaked at 37.16 in 1991 and was at its lowest, 23.38, in 2025.

That places South Korea 52nd out of 186 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 33.57 28.54 37.16 9
2000s 27.44 25.24 29.08 10
2010s 25.38 24.58 25.76 10
2020s 24.12 23.38 24.65 6

Countries ranked near South Korea

  1. 49 Mexico 24.52 compare
  2. 50 Trinidad and Tobago 24.18 compare
  3. 51 Morocco 23.83 compare
  4. 53 Tonga 23.34 compare
  5. 54 Japan 23.23 compare
  6. 55 El Salvador 23.14 compare

See the full ranking of 186 places →

More reference data data for South Korea

All data for South Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is industry share of total emplyoment in South Korea?
Industry share of total emplyoment in South Korea was 23.38 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest industry share of total emplyoment recorded in South Korea?
The highest recorded value was 37.16 in 1991.
What is the lowest industry share of total emplyoment recorded in South Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 23.38 in 2025.
How does South Korea rank for industry share of total emplyoment?
South Korea ranks 52nd out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
Is industry share of total emplyoment rising or falling in South Korea?
Over the last ten years it is down 8.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this South Korea data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Industry share of total emplyoment. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

About this data

Indicator
Industry share of total emplyoment
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
186 places, 6,496 data points, 1991–2025
Last refreshed