Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea
South Korea: Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) was 5.6% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea, 1975–2025
Source: Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
In 2025, unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea stood at 5.6%.
That represents a change of down 11.6% on the previous year and down 44.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea peaked at 12.6% in 2000 and was at its lowest, 5.4%, in 2023.
South Korea ranks 128th of 157 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 27 years of available data.
Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 11.1% | — |
| 2000 | 12.6% | +13.6% |
| 2001 | 11.5% | -9.3% |
| 2002 | 9.6% | -16.5% |
| 2003 | 11.2% | +17.1% |
| 2004 | 11.4% | +1.7% |
| 2005 | 11.2% | -2.0% |
| 2006 | 10.5% | -5.9% |
| 2007 | 10.3% | -1.7% |
| 2008 | 11.1% | +7.4% |
| 2009 | 11.1% | -0.1% |
| 2010 | 10.2% | -8.5% |
| 2011 | 10.2% | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 8.4% | -17.6% |
| 2013 | 9.1% | +9.1% |
| 2014 | 9.6% | +4.7% |
| 2015 | 10.1% | +5.6% |
| 2016 | 10.5% | +3.9% |
| 2017 | 10.3% | -1.9% |
| 2018 | 10.6% | +2.7% |
| 2019 | 10.4% | -1.6% |
| 2020 | 11.0% | +5.8% |
| 2021 | 9.1% | -16.9% |
| 2022 | 7.4% | -19.1% |
| 2023 | 5.4% | -26.4% |
| 2024 | 6.4% | +17.5% |
| 2025 | 5.6% | -11.6% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 5.6% is below the median for high income countries, which is 14.2%, 40% of the median. (68 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 5.6% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 8.3%, 68% of the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 11.1% | 11.1% | 11.1% | 1 |
| 2000s | 11.1% | 9.6% | 12.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 9.9% | 8.4% | 10.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 7.5% | 5.4% | 11.0% | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
- 125 Nicaragua 6.4% compare
- 126 Ecuador 6.1% compare
- 127 Philippines 6.1% compare
- 129 El Salvador 5.5% compare
- 130 Honduras 5.5% compare
- 131 Madagascar 5.5% compare
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 male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea?
- Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) in South Korea was 5.6% in 2025, according to Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 12.6% in 2000.
- What is the lowest unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.4% in 2023.
- How does South Korea rank for unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24)?
- South Korea ranks 128th out of 157 countries with data for 2025.
- Is unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 44.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- 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 Unemployment, youth male (% of male labor force ages 15-24) (national estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 27 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. Definitions of labor force and unemployment differ by country.