Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) … national in South Korea
South Korea: Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) … national was 78.8% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) in South Korea, 1960–2025
Source: Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
The most recent figure for ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) in South Korea is 78.8%, measured in 2025. That is the highest value across all 51 years on record.
That represents a change of up 1.2% on the previous year and up 11.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) in South Korea peaked at 78.8% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 38.2%, in 1960.
South Korea ranks 101st of 196 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 51 years of available data.
Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) … national in South Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 38.2% | — |
| 1966 | 43.3% | +13.4% |
| 1970 | 51.3% | +18.4% |
| 1975 | 61.2% | +19.4% |
| 1979 | 62.2% | +1.5% |
| 1980 | 55.9% | -10.0% |
| 1981 | 55.8% | -0.3% |
| 1982 | 57.9% | +3.8% |
| 1983 | 58.2% | +0.5% |
| 1984 | 56.4% | -3.0% |
| 1985 | 57.9% | +2.8% |
| 1986 | 59.8% | +3.1% |
| 1987 | 62.0% | +3.7% |
| 1988 | 61.8% | -0.3% |
| 1989 | 63.4% | +2.6% |
| 1990 | 63.5% | +0.1% |
| 1991 | 62.8% | -1.1% |
| 1992 | 62.3% | -0.8% |
| 1993 | 62.2% | -0.1% |
| 1994 | 62.7% | +0.8% |
| 1995 | 63.3% | +1.1% |
| 1996 | 64.1% | +1.3% |
| 1997 | 65.4% | +2.0% |
| 1998 | 62.7% | -4.1% |
| 1999 | 64.0% | +2.0% |
| 2000 | 66.3% | +3.5% |
| 2001 | 67.1% | +1.3% |
| 2002 | 67.1% | -0.1% |
| 2003 | 66.0% | -1.5% |
| 2004 | 67.4% | +2.0% |
| 2005 | 67.8% | +0.7% |
| 2006 | 68.4% | +0.9% |
| 2007 | 68.4% | -0.1% |
| 2008 | 68.6% | +0.3% |
| 2009 | 68.0% | -0.9% |
| 2010 | 68.4% | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 68.5% | +0.2% |
| 2012 | 68.7% | +0.3% |
| 2013 | 69.1% | +0.6% |
| 2014 | 69.9% | +1.2% |
| 2015 | 70.6% | +0.9% |
| 2016 | 71.0% | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 71.7% | +0.9% |
| 2018 | 72.2% | +0.7% |
| 2019 | 73.2% | +1.4% |
| 2020 | 73.1% | -0.1% |
| 2021 | 73.8% | +1.0% |
| 2022 | 74.7% | +1.2% |
| 2023 | 76.4% | +2.3% |
| 2024 | 77.8% | +1.9% |
| 2025 | 78.8% | +1.2% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 78.8% is below the median for high income countries, which is 85.1%, 93% of the median. (79 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 78.8% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 78.7%, 1.0× the median. (33 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 40.7% | 38.2% | 43.3% | 2 |
| 1970s | 58.2% | 51.3% | 62.2% | 3 |
| 1980s | 58.9% | 55.8% | 63.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 63.3% | 62.2% | 65.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 67.5% | 66.0% | 68.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 70.3% | 68.4% | 73.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 75.8% | 73.1% | 78.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More work & labour data for South Korea
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 16,840 (2027)
- Labour force participation rate (ILO modelled estimates) 63.91 (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) 29,824 (2027)
- Unemployment rate (ILO modelled estimates) 2.96 (2027)
- Labour dependency ratio 0.78 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP 97,052 (2027)
- Output per worker, GDP constant 2015 US $ 65,686 (2027)
- Employment-to-population ratio (ILO modelled estimates) 62.02 (2027)
- Persons outside the labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+) 0.9719 % change on previous year (2027)
- Labour force (ILO modelled estimates) (15+), annual growth rate -0.1065 % change on previous year (2027)
Frequently asked questions
- What is ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) in South Korea?
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) in South Korea was 78.8% in 2025, according to Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 78.8% in 2025.
- What is the lowest ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 38.2% in 1960.
- How does South Korea rank for ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%)?
- South Korea ranks 101st out of 196 countries with data for 2025.
- Is ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) (national estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 51 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate is the proportion of female labor force participation relative to male labor force participation. The labor force participation rate is the labor force as a percent of the population ages 15 and older. The labor force is the sum of all persons of working age who are employed and those who are unemployed.