People using at least basic sanitation facilities in South Korea
South Korea: People using at least basic sanitation facilities was 51.58 million people in 2024. ▲ Rising
People using at least basic sanitation facilities in South Korea, 2000–2024
Source: WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in people.
Analysis
South Korea recorded 51.58 million people for people using at least basic sanitation facilities in 2024.
That represents a change of down 0.1% on the previous year and up 2.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, people using at least basic sanitation facilities in South Korea peaked at 51.75 million people in 2020 and was at its lowest, 46.77 million people, in 2000.
That places South Korea 22nd out of 232 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
People using at least basic sanitation facilities in South Korea, year by year
| Year | people | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 46.77 million people | — |
| 2001 | 47.04 million people | +0.6% |
| 2002 | 47.30 million people | +0.5% |
| 2003 | 47.51 million people | +0.5% |
| 2004 | 47.70 million people | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 47.85 million people | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 48.01 million people | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 48.18 million people | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 48.35 million people | +0.4% |
| 2009 | 48.53 million people | +0.4% |
| 2010 | 48.75 million people | +0.4% |
| 2011 | 49.10 million people | +0.7% |
| 2012 | 49.56 million people | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 50.03 million people | +0.9% |
| 2014 | 50.48 million people | +0.9% |
| 2015 | 50.92 million people | +0.9% |
| 2016 | 51.23 million people | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 51.41 million people | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 51.55 million people | +0.3% |
| 2019 | 51.67 million people | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 51.75 million people | +0.2% |
| 2021 | 51.73 million people | -0.0% |
| 2022 | 51.66 million people | -0.1% |
| 2023 | 51.62 million people | -0.1% |
| 2024 | 51.58 million people | -0.1% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 51.58 million people is above the median for high income countries, which is 3.05 million people, 16.9× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 51.58 million people is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 1.02 million people, 50.5× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 47.72 million people | 46.77 million people | 48.53 million people | 10 |
| 2010s | 50.47 million people | 48.75 million people | 51.67 million people | 10 |
| 2020s | 51.67 million people | 51.58 million people | 51.75 million people | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More reference data data for South Korea
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.9638 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.9281 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 3.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.2074 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 3.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 3.23 (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 (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.13 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is people using at least basic sanitation facilities in South Korea?
- People using at least basic sanitation facilities in South Korea was 51.58 million people in 2024, according to WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest people using at least basic sanitation facilities recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 51.75 million people in 2020.
- What is the lowest people using at least basic sanitation facilities recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 46.77 million people in 2000.
- How does South Korea rank for people using at least basic sanitation facilities?
- South Korea ranks 22nd out of 232 countries with data for 2024.
- Is people using at least basic sanitation facilities rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of People using at least basic sanitation facilities. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of people using improved sanitation facilities that are not shared with other households.