Youth unemployment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) in South Korea
South Korea: Youth unemployment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) was 219.06 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Youth unemployment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) in South Korea, 2015–2025
Source: International Labour Organization.
Analysis
In 2025, youth unemployment (previous ilo definition - icls13) in South Korea stood at 219.06. That is the lowest value across all 11 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 1.2% on the previous year and down 40.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, youth unemployment (previous ilo definition - icls13) in South Korea peaked at 408.82 in 2016 and was at its lowest, 219.06, in 2025.
South Korea ranks 32nd of 94 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 11 years of available data.
Youth unemployment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) in South Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 369.51 | — |
| 2016 | 408.82 | +10.6% |
| 2017 | 403.53 | -1.3% |
| 2018 | 388.62 | -3.7% |
| 2019 | 369.44 | -4.9% |
| 2020 | 353.33 | -4.4% |
| 2021 | 310.53 | -12.1% |
| 2022 | 259.48 | -16.4% |
| 2023 | 227.12 | -12.5% |
| 2024 | 221.64 | -2.4% |
| 2025 | 219.06 | -1.2% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 219.06 is above the median for high income countries, which is 84.37, 2.6× the median. (45 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 219.06 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 219.06, 1.0× the median. (9 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 387.98 | 369.44 | 408.82 | 5 |
| 2020s | 265.19 | 219.06 | 353.33 | 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 youth unemployment (previous ilo definition - icls13) in South Korea?
- Youth unemployment (previous ilo definition - icls13) in South Korea was 219.06 in 2025, according to International Labour Organization.
- What is the highest youth unemployment (previous ilo definition - icls13) recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 408.82 in 2016.
- What is the lowest youth unemployment (previous ilo definition - icls13) recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 219.06 in 2025.
- How does South Korea rank for youth unemployment (previous ilo definition - icls13)?
- South Korea ranks 32nd out of 94 countries with data for 2025.
- Is youth unemployment (previous ilo definition - icls13) rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 40.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Youth unemployment (previous ILO definition - ICLS13) (15-29). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 11 observations, free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required).
About this data
With the aim of promoting international comparability, statistics presented on ILOSTAT are based on standard international definitions wherever feasible and may differ from official national figures. This series is based on the 13th ICLS definitions. For time series comparability, it includes countries that have implemented the 19th ICLS standards, for which data are also available in the Work Statistics -- 19th ICLS (WORK) database. The unemployed comprise all persons of working age who were: a) without work during the reference period, i.e. were not in paid employment or self-employment; b) currently available for work, i.e. were available for paid employment or self-employment during the reference period; and c) seeking work, i.e. had taken specific steps in a specified recent period to seek paid employment or self-employment. For more information, refer to the Youth Labour Market Indicators (YouthSTATS) database description.