Unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea
South Korea: Unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) was 6.7% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
The most recent figure for unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea is 6.7%, measured in 2025.
The figure is up 3.0% on the previous year and down 32.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea peaked at 12.5% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 4.7%, in 1996.
That places South Korea 149th out of 187 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 35 years of available data.
Unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 5.7% | — |
| 1992 | 6.5% | +13.4% |
| 1993 | 7.0% | +7.4% |
| 1994 | 5.9% | -15.2% |
| 1995 | 5.2% | -11.6% |
| 1996 | 4.7% | -10.2% |
| 1997 | 6.5% | +37.7% |
| 1998 | 12.5% | +93.2% |
| 1999 | 11.5% | -8.1% |
| 2000 | 8.4% | -27.0% |
| 2001 | 8.1% | -3.0% |
| 2002 | 6.9% | -14.7% |
| 2003 | 8.5% | +22.0% |
| 2004 | 9.0% | +6.0% |
| 2005 | 8.3% | -7.4% |
| 2006 | 8.0% | -3.4% |
| 2007 | 6.3% | -21.8% |
| 2008 | 7.2% | +14.6% |
| 2009 | 8.1% | +12.1% |
| 2010 | 7.6% | -6.2% |
| 2011 | 7.1% | -6.0% |
| 2012 | 7.4% | +4.1% |
| 2013 | 8.9% | +20.8% |
| 2014 | 8.0% | -10.5% |
| 2015 | 9.9% | +24.0% |
| 2016 | 10.0% | +1.3% |
| 2017 | 9.5% | -5.0% |
| 2018 | 9.9% | +4.2% |
| 2019 | 9.5% | -4.1% |
| 2020 | 9.6% | +1.0% |
| 2021 | 7.4% | -23.6% |
| 2022 | 6.2% | -16.3% |
| 2023 | 5.4% | -12.0% |
| 2024 | 6.5% | +20.3% |
| 2025 | 6.7% | +3.0% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 6.7% is below the median for high income countries, which is 13.1%, 51% of the median. (62 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 6.7% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 8.6%, 78% of the median. (29 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) 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 | +93.2% | 6.5% | 12.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 7.3% | 4.7% | 12.5% | 9 |
| 2000s | 7.9% | 6.3% | 9.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 8.8% | 7.1% | 10.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.0% | 5.4% | 9.6% | 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, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea?
- Unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea was 6.7% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 12.5% in 1998.
- What is the lowest unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.7% in 1996.
- How does South Korea rank for unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24)?
- South Korea ranks 149th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 32.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Unemployment, youth female (% of female labor force ages 15-24) (modeled ILO estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Youth unemployment refers to the share of the labor force ages 15-24 without work but available for and seeking employment.