Japan vs South Korea: Unemployment rate (9/26/2025)
Japan
2.53
in 2031
South Korea
2.8
in 2031
Japan rank
20th
South Korea rank
18th
Unemployment rate (9/26/2025) over time
- Japan
- South Korea
How they compare
South Korea currently reports 2.8 against 2.53 in Japan, a difference of 0.27.
That makes South Korea's figure about 1.1 times Japan's.
The two have swapped places 4 times across 52 shared years of data; in 1980 it was South Korea ahead.
Japan ranks 20th and South Korea ranks 18th of 22 countries.
Across the 6 decades both report, Japan averaged higher in 2 and South Korea in 4.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Japan | South Korea | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 2.5 | 3.79 | 1.29 | South Korea |
| 1990s | 3.04 | 3.31 | 0.2667 | South Korea |
| 2000s | 4.65 | 3.62 | 1.04 | Japan |
| 2010s | 3.56 | 3.55 | 0.015 | Japan |
| 2020s | 2.6 | 3.01 | 0.4138 | South Korea |
| 2030s | 2.53 | 2.8 | 0.2667 | South Korea |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher unemployment rate, Japan or South Korea?
- South Korea, at 2.8 against 2.53 in Japan as of 2031.
- What is the difference in unemployment rate between Japan and South Korea?
- 0.27, with South Korea ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and South Korea?
- 52 years are reported by both, from 1980 to 2031.
- How do Japan and South Korea rank globally for unemployment rate?
- Japan ranks 20th and South Korea ranks 18th of 22 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- International Monetary Fund, published as Unemployment rate (9/26/2025). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
The World Economic Outlook (WEO) database is created during the biannual WEO exercise, which begins in January and June of each year and results in the April and September/October WEO publication. Selected series from the publication are available in a database format.