Neonatal mortality rate in South Korea

South Korea: Neonatal mortality rate was 0.1166 deaths per 100 live births in 2024. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2024)
0.1166 deaths per 100 live births
Change on year
down 2.6%
World rank
192nd
of 199 countries
All-time high
4.02 deaths per 100 live births
in 1951
All-time low
0.1166 deaths per 100 live births
in 2024
Years of data
74
1951–2024

Neonatal mortality rate in South Korea, 1951–2024

01234195119872024

Source: United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in deaths per 100 live births.

Analysis

South Korea recorded 0.1166 deaths per 100 live births for neonatal mortality rate in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 74 years on record.

That represents a change of down 2.6% on the previous year and down 29.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, neonatal mortality rate in South Korea peaked at 4.02 deaths per 100 live births in 1951 and was at its lowest, 0.1166 deaths per 100 live births, in 2024.

South Korea ranks 192nd of 199 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 3.31 deaths per 100 live births 2.88 deaths per 100 live births 4.02 deaths per 100 live births 9
1960s 2.71 deaths per 100 live births 2.48 deaths per 100 live births 2.85 deaths per 100 live births 10
1970s 2.1 deaths per 100 live births 1.83 deaths per 100 live births 2.4 deaths per 100 live births 10
1980s 1.26 deaths per 100 live births 0.8131 deaths per 100 live births 1.75 deaths per 100 live births 10
1990s 0.5291 deaths per 100 live births 0.3659 deaths per 100 live births 0.7438 deaths per 100 live births 10
2000s 0.2534 deaths per 100 live births 0.1799 deaths per 100 live births 0.3417 deaths per 100 live births 10
2010s 0.1631 deaths per 100 live births 0.145 deaths per 100 live births 0.1754 deaths per 100 live births 10
2020s 0.1258 deaths per 100 live births 0.1166 deaths per 100 live births 0.1378 deaths per 100 live births 5

Countries ranked near South Korea

  1. 189 Slovenia 0.128 deaths per 100 live births compare
  2. 190 Andorra 0.1245 deaths per 100 live births compare
  3. 191 Latvia 0.1201 deaths per 100 live births compare
  4. 193 Singapore 0.1082 deaths per 100 live births compare
  5. 194 North Macedonia 0.1055 deaths per 100 live births compare
  6. 195 Estonia 0.0946 deaths per 100 live births compare

See the full ranking of 199 places →

More health data for South Korea

All data for South Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is neonatal mortality rate in South Korea?
Neonatal mortality rate in South Korea was 0.1166 deaths per 100 live births in 2024, according to United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest neonatal mortality rate recorded in South Korea?
The highest recorded value was 4.02 deaths per 100 live births in 1951.
What is the lowest neonatal mortality rate recorded in South Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 0.1166 deaths per 100 live births in 2024.
How does South Korea rank for neonatal mortality rate?
South Korea ranks 192nd out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
Is neonatal mortality rate rising or falling in South Korea?
Over the last ten years it is down 29.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this South Korea data come from?
The figures come from United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Neonatal mortality rate. 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

Indicator
Neonatal mortality rate
Unit
deaths per 100 live births
Source
United Nations Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
199 places, 10,377 data points, 1951–2024
Last refreshed

The estimated number of deaths of children aged less than 28 days, per 100 live births .