Prevalence of overweight, female in South Korea

South Korea: Prevalence of overweight, female was 24.9% in 2022. ▬ Flat

Latest (2022)
24.9%
Change on year
up 0.2%
World rank
187th
of 196 countries
All-time high
25.1%
in 2002
All-time low
23.1%
in 1990
Years of data
33
1990–2022

Prevalence of overweight, female in South Korea, 1990–2022

01020301990200620221990: 23.1 % of female adults1991: 23.4 % of female adults1992: 23.6 % of female adults1993: 23.9 % of female adults1994: 24.2 % of female adults1995: 24.4 % of female adults1996: 24.6 % of female adults1997: 24.7 % of female adults1998: 24.9 % of female adults1999: 25 % of female adults2000: 25.1 % of female adults2001: 25.1 % of female adults2002: 25.1 % of female adults2003: 25.1 % of female adults2004: 25.1 % of female adults2005: 25.1 % of female adults2006: 25 % of female adults2007: 25 % of female adults2008: 24.9 % of female adults2009: 24.9 % of female adults2010: 24.8 % of female adults2011: 24.8 % of female adults2012: 24.8 % of female adults2013: 24.7 % of female adults2014: 24.7 % of female adults2015: 24.7 % of female adults2016: 24.7 % of female adults2017: 24.7 % of female adults2018: 24.8 % of female adults2019: 24.8 % of female adults2020: 24.8 % of female adults2021: 24.8 % of female adults2022: 24.9 % of female adults

Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/). Measured in % of female adults.

Analysis

In 2022, prevalence of overweight, female in South Korea stood at 24.9%.

That represents a change of up 0.2% on the previous year and up 0.5% over ten years.

Over the whole period, prevalence of overweight, female in South Korea peaked at 25.1% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 23.1%, in 1990.

South Korea ranks 187th of 196 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.

Prevalence of overweight, female in South Korea, year by year

Annual values for Prevalence of overweight, female (% of female adults) in South Korea, 1990 to 2022.
Year % of female adults Change
1990 23.1%
1991 23.4% +1.3%
1992 23.6% +1.2%
1993 23.9% +1.1%
1994 24.2% +1.0%
1995 24.4% +0.9%
1996 24.6% +0.8%
1997 24.7% +0.7%
1998 24.9% +0.6%
1999 25.0% +0.4%
2000 25.1% +0.3%
2001 25.1% +0.2%
2002 25.1% +0.0%
2003 25.1% +0.0%
2004 25.1% -0.1%
2005 25.1% -0.1%
2006 25.0% -0.2%
2007 25.0% -0.2%
2008 24.9% -0.2%
2009 24.9% -0.2%
2010 24.8% -0.2%
2011 24.8% -0.2%
2012 24.8% -0.2%
2013 24.7% -0.1%
2014 24.7% -0.0%
2015 24.7% +0.0%
2016 24.7% +0.0%
2017 24.7% +0.0%
2018 24.8% +0.1%
2019 24.8% +0.1%
2020 24.8% +0.1%
2021 24.8% +0.2%
2022 24.9% +0.2%

South Korea compared with similar countries

  • South Korea's 24.9% is below the median for high income countries, which is 55.4%, 45% of the median. (66 countries reporting)
  • South Korea's 24.9% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 57.8%, 43% of the median. (32 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1990s 24.2% 23.1% 25.0% 10
2000s 25.0% 24.9% 25.1% 10
2010s 24.7% 24.7% 24.8% 10
2020s 24.8% 24.8% 24.9% 3

Countries ranked near South Korea

  1. 184 Democratic Republic of Congo 27.4% compare
  2. 185 Rwanda 27.3% compare
  3. 186 Burkina Faso 25.8% compare
  4. 188 Niger 22.2% compare
  5. 189 Chad 20.1% compare
  6. 190 Eritrea 20.1% compare

See the full ranking of 239 places →

More health data for South Korea

All data for South Korea →

Frequently asked questions

What is prevalence of overweight, female in South Korea?
Prevalence of overweight, female in South Korea was 24.9% in 2022, according to World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/).
What is the highest prevalence of overweight, female recorded in South Korea?
The highest recorded value was 25.1% in 2002.
What is the lowest prevalence of overweight, female recorded in South Korea?
The lowest recorded value was 23.1% in 1990.
How does South Korea rank for prevalence of overweight, female?
South Korea ranks 187th out of 196 countries with data for 2022.
Is prevalence of overweight, female rising or falling in South Korea?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
Where does this South Korea data come from?
The figures come from World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/), published as part of Prevalence of overweight, female (% of female adults). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Prevalence of overweight, female in South Korea. Statizoid, drawing on World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/). Retrieved 17 September 2026, from https://health.statizoid.com/stat/prevalence-of-overweight-female-percent-of-female-adults/korea-rep/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://health.statizoid.com/stat/prevalence-of-overweight-female-percent-of-female-adults/korea-rep/">Prevalence of overweight, female in South Korea</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Prevalence of overweight, female (% of female adults)
Unit
% of female adults
Source
World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
239 places, 7,896 data points, 1975–2022
Last refreshed

Prevalence of overweight female adults is the percentage of females ages 18 and over whose Body Mass Index (BMI) is more than 25 kg/m2. Body Mass Index (BMI) is a simple index of weight-for-height, or the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters.