Median age in South Korea
South Korea: Median age was 44.49 in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
44.49
Change on year
up 1.2%
World rank
21st
of 236 countries
All-time high
44.49
in 2023
All-time low
17.45
in 1952
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Median age in South Korea, 1950–2023
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
South Korea recorded 44.49 for median age in 2023. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.2% on the previous year and up 15.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, median age in South Korea peaked at 44.49 in 2023 and was at its lowest, 17.45, in 1952.
That places South Korea 21st out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Median age in South Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 17.69 | — |
| 1951 | 17.48 | -1.2% |
| 1952 | 17.45 | -0.1% |
| 1953 | 17.57 | +0.6% |
| 1954 | 17.71 | +0.8% |
| 1955 | 17.87 | +0.9% |
| 1956 | 18.02 | +0.8% |
| 1957 | 18.15 | +0.7% |
| 1958 | 18.25 | +0.6% |
| 1959 | 18.31 | +0.3% |
| 1960 | 18.32 | +0.1% |
| 1961 | 18.27 | -0.3% |
| 1962 | 18.13 | -0.8% |
| 1963 | 17.9 | -1.2% |
| 1964 | 17.67 | -1.3% |
| 1965 | 17.52 | -0.9% |
| 1966 | 17.47 | -0.3% |
| 1967 | 17.51 | +0.2% |
| 1968 | 17.57 | +0.4% |
| 1969 | 17.63 | +0.3% |
| 1970 | 17.7 | +0.4% |
| 1971 | 17.83 | +0.8% |
| 1972 | 18.01 | +1.0% |
| 1973 | 18.22 | +1.2% |
| 1974 | 18.5 | +1.5% |
| 1975 | 18.85 | +1.9% |
| 1976 | 19.21 | +2.0% |
| 1977 | 19.59 | +2.0% |
| 1978 | 20 | +2.1% |
| 1979 | 20.45 | +2.2% |
| 1980 | 20.92 | +2.3% |
| 1981 | 21.39 | +2.2% |
| 1982 | 21.83 | +2.1% |
| 1983 | 22.28 | +2.1% |
| 1984 | 22.75 | +2.1% |
| 1985 | 23.25 | +2.2% |
| 1986 | 23.76 | +2.2% |
| 1987 | 24.27 | +2.1% |
| 1988 | 24.77 | +2.1% |
| 1989 | 25.29 | +2.1% |
| 1990 | 25.81 | +2.0% |
| 1991 | 26.34 | +2.1% |
| 1992 | 26.86 | +2.0% |
| 1993 | 27.36 | +1.9% |
| 1994 | 27.85 | +1.8% |
| 1995 | 28.34 | +1.7% |
| 1996 | 28.8 | +1.6% |
| 1997 | 29.24 | +1.5% |
| 1998 | 29.7 | +1.6% |
| 1999 | 30.17 | +1.6% |
| 2000 | 30.65 | +1.6% |
| 2001 | 31.18 | +1.7% |
| 2002 | 31.74 | +1.8% |
| 2003 | 32.33 | +1.9% |
| 2004 | 32.93 | +1.9% |
| 2005 | 33.55 | +1.9% |
| 2006 | 34.18 | +1.9% |
| 2007 | 34.8 | +1.8% |
| 2008 | 35.41 | +1.8% |
| 2009 | 36.01 | +1.7% |
| 2010 | 36.59 | +1.6% |
| 2011 | 37.21 | +1.7% |
| 2012 | 37.88 | +1.8% |
| 2013 | 38.54 | +1.8% |
| 2014 | 39.21 | +1.7% |
| 2015 | 39.87 | +1.7% |
| 2016 | 40.48 | +1.5% |
| 2017 | 41.05 | +1.4% |
| 2018 | 41.62 | +1.4% |
| 2019 | 42.18 | +1.4% |
| 2020 | 42.76 | +1.4% |
| 2021 | 43.37 | +1.4% |
| 2022 | 43.94 | +1.3% |
| 2023 | 44.49 | +1.2% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 44.49 is above the median for high income countries, which is 39.36, 1.1× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 44.49 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 29.83, 1.5× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 17.85 | 17.45 | 18.31 | 10 |
| 1960s | 17.8 | 17.47 | 18.32 | 10 |
| 1970s | 18.84 | 17.7 | 20.45 | 10 |
| 1980s | 23.05 | 20.92 | 25.29 | 10 |
| 1990s | 28.05 | 25.81 | 30.17 | 10 |
| 2000s | 33.28 | 30.65 | 36.01 | 10 |
| 2010s | 39.46 | 36.59 | 42.18 | 10 |
| 2020s | 43.64 | 42.76 | 44.49 | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More reference data data for South Korea
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Burning - Crop 31.73 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Manure Management 880.21 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - IPCC Agriculture 12,007 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.13 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 4.37 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 5.17 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 19.85 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 (AR5) - Enteric 6,875 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.9638 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (CO2eq) (AR5) - Manure Management 2,038 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is median age in South Korea?
- Median age in South Korea was 44.49 in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest median age recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 44.49 in 2023.
- What is the lowest median age recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 17.45 in 1952.
- How does South Korea rank for median age?
- South Korea ranks 21st out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is median age rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 15.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Median age. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).