Unemployment rate for young people in South Korea
South Korea: Unemployment rate for young people was 6.7 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Unemployment rate for young people in South Korea, 1991–2025
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
South Korea recorded 6.7 for unemployment rate for young people in 2025.
That represents a change of up 4.1% on the previous year and down 32.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment rate for young people in South Korea peaked at 15.72 in 1998 and was at its lowest, 5.41, in 2023.
That places South Korea 148th out of 186 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Unemployment rate for young people in South Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 7.16 | — |
| 1992 | 7.49 | +4.5% |
| 1993 | 8.79 | +17.4% |
| 1994 | 7.12 | -18.9% |
| 1995 | 6.16 | -13.5% |
| 1996 | 6.01 | -2.5% |
| 1997 | 7.47 | +24.3% |
| 1998 | 15.72 | +110.5% |
| 1999 | 13.9 | -11.6% |
| 2000 | 10 | -28.0% |
| 2001 | 9.36 | -6.4% |
| 2002 | 7.9 | -15.6% |
| 2003 | 9.42 | +19.3% |
| 2004 | 9.8 | +4.0% |
| 2005 | 9.32 | -4.9% |
| 2006 | 8.92 | -4.3% |
| 2007 | 7.85 | -11.9% |
| 2008 | 8.65 | +10.1% |
| 2009 | 9.22 | +6.6% |
| 2010 | 8.54 | -7.4% |
| 2011 | 8.3 | -2.8% |
| 2012 | 7.74 | -6.7% |
| 2013 | 8.94 | +15.6% |
| 2014 | 8.59 | -3.9% |
| 2015 | 9.9 | +15.2% |
| 2016 | 10.14 | +2.5% |
| 2017 | 9.78 | -3.6% |
| 2018 | 10.12 | +3.5% |
| 2019 | 9.83 | -2.9% |
| 2020 | 10.14 | +3.2% |
| 2021 | 8.05 | -20.6% |
| 2022 | 6.64 | -17.6% |
| 2023 | 5.41 | -18.6% |
| 2024 | 6.43 | +19.0% |
| 2025 | 6.7 | +4.1% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 6.7 is below the median for high income countries, which is 13.81, 48% of the median. (62 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 6.7 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 8.96, 75% of the median. (29 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Unemployment rate for young people 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | +110.5% | 7.47 | 15.72 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 8.87 | 6.01 | 15.72 | 9 |
| 2000s | 9.04 | 7.85 | 10 | 10 |
| 2010s | 9.19 | 7.74 | 10.14 | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.23 | 5.41 | 10.14 | 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 unemployment rate for young people in South Korea?
- Unemployment rate for young people in South Korea was 6.7 in 2025, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest unemployment rate for young people recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 15.72 in 1998.
- What is the lowest unemployment rate for young people recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.41 in 2023.
- How does South Korea rank for unemployment rate for young people?
- South Korea ranks 148th out of 186 countries with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment rate for young people rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 32.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Unemployment rate for young people. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).