Life expectancy, source comparison in South Korea
South Korea: Life expectancy, source comparison was 84.33 years in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
84.33 years
Change on year
up 1.9%
World rank
5th
of 236 countries
All-time high
84.33 years
in 2023
All-time low
22.23 years
in 1950
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Life expectancy, source comparison in South Korea, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
In 2023, life expectancy, source comparison in South Korea stood at 84.33 years. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.
The figure is up 1.9% on the previous year and up 3.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, life expectancy, source comparison in South Korea peaked at 84.33 years in 2023 and was at its lowest, 22.23 years, in 1950.
That places South Korea 5th 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.
Life expectancy, source comparison in South Korea, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 22.23 years | — |
| 1951 | 26.64 years | +19.9% |
| 1952 | 36.57 years | +37.2% |
| 1953 | 40.51 years | +10.8% |
| 1954 | 46.08 years | +13.8% |
| 1955 | 48.35 years | +4.9% |
| 1956 | 50.2 years | +3.8% |
| 1957 | 51.55 years | +2.7% |
| 1958 | 51.84 years | +0.5% |
| 1959 | 52.94 years | +2.1% |
| 1960 | 53.76 years | +1.6% |
| 1961 | 54.44 years | +1.3% |
| 1962 | 55.03 years | +1.1% |
| 1963 | 54.99 years | -0.1% |
| 1964 | 55.34 years | +0.6% |
| 1965 | 55.78 years | +0.8% |
| 1966 | 55.42 years | -0.6% |
| 1967 | 60.87 years | +9.8% |
| 1968 | 60.87 years | -0.0% |
| 1969 | 61.43 years | +0.9% |
| 1970 | 62.17 years | +1.2% |
| 1971 | 62.67 years | +0.8% |
| 1972 | 63.22 years | +0.9% |
| 1973 | 63.77 years | +0.9% |
| 1974 | 64.24 years | +0.7% |
| 1975 | 64.67 years | +0.7% |
| 1976 | 65.01 years | +0.5% |
| 1977 | 64.62 years | -0.6% |
| 1978 | 64.96 years | +0.5% |
| 1979 | 66.11 years | +1.8% |
| 1980 | 64.85 years | -1.9% |
| 1981 | 67.14 years | +3.5% |
| 1982 | 67.06 years | -0.1% |
| 1983 | 66.72 years | -0.5% |
| 1984 | 68.11 years | +2.1% |
| 1985 | 68.41 years | +0.4% |
| 1986 | 69.03 years | +0.9% |
| 1987 | 69.31 years | +0.4% |
| 1988 | 70.16 years | +1.2% |
| 1989 | 70.68 years | +0.7% |
| 1990 | 70.99 years | +0.4% |
| 1991 | 71.4 years | +0.6% |
| 1992 | 72.17 years | +1.1% |
| 1993 | 72.75 years | +0.8% |
| 1994 | 72.89 years | +0.2% |
| 1995 | 73.38 years | +0.7% |
| 1996 | 74.02 years | +0.9% |
| 1997 | 74.53 years | +0.7% |
| 1998 | 75.03 years | +0.7% |
| 1999 | 75.62 years | +0.8% |
| 2000 | 76.23 years | +0.8% |
| 2001 | 76.92 years | +0.9% |
| 2002 | 77.23 years | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 77.5 years | +0.3% |
| 2004 | 77.96 years | +0.6% |
| 2005 | 78.45 years | +0.6% |
| 2006 | 79.03 years | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 79.43 years | +0.5% |
| 2008 | 80 years | +0.7% |
| 2009 | 80.55 years | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 80.72 years | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 81.17 years | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 81.31 years | +0.2% |
| 2013 | 81.84 years | +0.6% |
| 2014 | 82.36 years | +0.6% |
| 2015 | 82.54 years | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 82.92 years | +0.5% |
| 2017 | 83.28 years | +0.4% |
| 2018 | 83.34 years | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 83.69 years | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 83.67 years | -0.0% |
| 2021 | 83.85 years | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 82.73 years | -1.3% |
| 2023 | 84.33 years | +1.9% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 84.33 years is above the median for high income countries, which is 81 years, 1.0× the median. (85 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 84.33 years is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 72.85 years, 1.2× the median. (37 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Life expectancy, source comparison in South Korea changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1952 | +37.2% | 26.64 years | 36.57 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 42.69 years | 22.23 years | 52.94 years | 10 |
| 1960s | 56.79 years | 53.76 years | 61.43 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 64.14 years | 62.17 years | 66.11 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 68.15 years | 64.85 years | 70.68 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 73.28 years | 70.99 years | 75.62 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 78.33 years | 76.23 years | 80.55 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 82.32 years | 80.72 years | 83.69 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 83.65 years | 82.73 years | 84.33 years | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
- 2 San Marino 85.71 years compare
- 3 Hong Kong 85.51 years compare
- 4 Japan 84.71 years compare
- 6 Saint Barthelemy 84.29 years compare
- 7 French Polynesia 84.07 years compare
- 8 Andorra 84.04 years compare
More health data for South Korea
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.43 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.1935 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 2,072 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 69 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 0 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate -2.66 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0118 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate -2.76 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is life expectancy, source comparison in South Korea?
- Life expectancy, source comparison in South Korea was 84.33 years in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest life expectancy, source comparison recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 84.33 years in 2023.
- What is the lowest life expectancy, source comparison recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 22.23 years in 1950.
- How does South Korea rank for life expectancy, source comparison?
- South Korea ranks 5th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is life expectancy, source comparison rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Life expectancy, source comparison. 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).
About this data
Period life expectancy at birth.