In 2024, the birth rate in South Korea stood at 0.75 births per woman. The country has long struggled with a declining birth rate, dropping below one birth per woman in 2018.

Historical chart and dataset showing South Korea birth rate by year from 1950 to 2025.

In 2023, the total fertility rate in South Korea decreased by 0.1 children per woman (-12.82 percent) compared to 2022. Therefore, the fertility rate in South Korea saw its lowest number in that year with 0.72 children per woman. The total fertility rate is the average number of children that a woman of childbearing age (generally considered 15 to 44 years) can hypothetically expect to have throughout her reproductive years. As fertility rates are estimates (similar to life expectancy), they refer to a hypothetical woman or cohort, and estimates assume that current age-specific fertility trends would remain constant throughout this person's reproductive years.Find more statistics on other topics about South Korea with key insights such as total life expectancy at birth, age dependency ratio, and infant mortality rate.

In 2024, the number of births in South Korea stood at *******, a slight increase compared to the previous year. Around two decades earlier, this number was twice as high. Declining fertility in South Korea A phenomenon that most East Asian countries and territories grapple with is a stark decline in fertility rates. This is especially evident in South Korea, which has the lowest fertility rate in the world, far below the 2.1 children per woman threshold that represents replacement fertility. In response to the expected economic consequences of a declining population, South Korea has implemented various initiatives to encourage married couples to have children. Factors contributing to low birth rates in South Korea One major element is the societal change in attitudes toward childbirth. In a survey, half of the South Korean respondents asserted that marriages can be happy without children, and a sizable share also stated that having children was dependent on economic factors. In addition, an increasing number of South Koreans are choosing not to get married. In 2023, South Korea recorded one of the lowest numbers of marriages in its history. Furthermore, there has been a growing trend among South Korean women to prioritize their financial independence and career continuity over traditional expectations of childbearing.

Graph and download economic data for Fertility Rate, Total for the Republic of Korea (SPDYNTFRTINKOR) from 1960 to 2023 about fertility, Korea, and rate.

Birth rate, crude (per 1,000 people) in South Korea was reported at 4.5 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. South Korea - Birth rate, crude - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

Historical chart and dataset showing South Korea fertility rate by year from 1950 to 2025.

Korea Fertility Rate: Total: Births per Woman data was reported at 1.172 Ratio in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 1.239 Ratio for 2015. Korea Fertility Rate: Total: Births per Woman data is updated yearly, averaging 1.656 Ratio from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 6.095 Ratio in 1960 and a record low of 1.076 Ratio in 2005. Korea Fertility Rate: Total: Births per Woman data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Korea – Table KR.World Bank: Health Statistics. Total fertility rate represents the number of children that would be born to a woman if she were to live to the end of her childbearing years and bear children in accordance with age-specific fertility rates of the specified year.; ; (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2017 Revision. (2) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (3) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (4) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Reprot (various years), (5) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database, and (6) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme.; Weighted average; Relevance to gender indicator: it can indicate the status of women within households and a woman’s decision about the number and spacing of children.

In 1900, the crude birth rate in South Korea was just under 42 births for every thousand people, meaning that approximately 4.2 percent of the population was born in that year. The crude birth rate would rise briefly in the 1930s, as Japanese investment would lead to economic growth on the peninsula, but would fall sharply in the 1940s, as the Second World War and the Korean War would result in two decades of significant socio-economic turmoil. While the crude birth rate would recover quickly after the end of the Korean War in 1953, a sharp decline in fertility beginning in the 1960s would see a corresponding fall in the crude birth rate lasting until the late 1980s, as South Korea would go through a rapid demographic transition and modernization. While the crude birth rate would briefly rise in the early 1990s, partially due to governmental restrictions on sex-selective abortion; the rate of decline would slow going into the 21st century. As a result, in 2020, it is estimated that South Korea has a birth rate of seven births for every thousand people, which is one of the lowest birth rates in the world.

The crude birth rate in South Korea decreased by 0.4 live births per 1,000 inhabitants (-8.16 percent) compared to the previous year. This marks the lowest rate during the observed period. The crude birth rate is the annual number of live births divided by the total population, expressed per 1,000 people.Find more statistics on other topics about South Korea with key insights such as total fertility rate, total life expectancy at birth, and infant mortality rate.

In 1900, the fertility rate in the region of present-day South Korea was six children per woman, meaning that the average woman born in South Korea in that year could expect to have six children over the course of their reproductive years. This number began to fluctuate in the 1930s, when the Japanese administration (the Korean peninsula had been annexed by Japan in 1910) promoted fertility as part of the war effort, before fertility dropped below 5.2 births per woman in the aftermath of the war. It then increased above 6.3 in the 1950s due to the devastation and mass-displacement caused by the Korean War. As stability returned to the region, South Korea's fertility rate would fall sharply throughout the remainder of the century, as modernization, urbanization, and the implementation of family planning programs would see fertility fall to just over 1.5 children per woman by 1990.

Sex-selective abortion and gender ratios Abortion was illegal in South Korea between 1953 and 2020, although it was permitted in some cases from 1973 onward. Despite this, these laws were rarely enforced, and sex-selective abortion became widespread following advancements in ultrasound technology. In many Asian societies, it was often preferred to have male children as they were viewed as being better long-term providers for their parents and they would carry on the family name. In South Korea in the early 1990s, the practice of sex-selective abortion became so widespread that the gender ratio at birth was 114 males for every 100 females (reportedly as high as 125 in some cities), compared to the historical and natural average of approximately 105 males per 100 females. The government then prohibited doctors from revealing the gender of unborn babies to the parents in 1987, and introduced more severe penalties in 1994, in an attempt to revert this trend. The gender imbalance then reduced in the following decades, and has been at 106 males per 100 females since the 2010s (roughly the natural average). Abortion rights in South Korea were expanded in 2021.

Lowest in the world? Despite government initiatives aimed at increasing fertility, including financial incentives, South Korea's fertility rate has continued to fall in recent years, and today is at around half of replacement level. In 2020, it is estimated that the average woman born in South Korea will have just over one child over the course of their reproductive years. Some critics cite economic factors, such as high education and housing costs, for the reason that young couples are postponing marriage and having families; today, South Korea has the lowest adolescent fertility rate, and the lowest overall fertility rate in the Asia Pacific region. Due to the current trajectory of South Korea's fertility rate, in January 2021, it was announced that the South Korean population experienced a natural decline for the first time in it's history.

In 2022, the fertility rate among women between the ages of 30 and 34 years in South Korea stood at around 73.5 births per 1,000 women. This was the most fertile age range that year, followed by women in their late thirties and late twenties.

Graph and download economic data for Crude Birth Rate for the Republic of Korea (SPDYNCBRTINKOR) from 1960 to 2023 about birth, Korea, crude, and rate.

Fertility rate, total (births per woman) in South Korea was reported at 0.721 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. South Korea - Fertility rate, total (births per woman) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on June of 2025.

In 2023, the total fertility rate in South Korea's capital Seoul stood at about 0.55 children per woman. The fertility rate in Seoul has declined sharply over the past decade.

Graph and download economic data for Adolescent Fertility Rate for the Republic of Korea (SPADOTFRTKOR) from 1960 to 2023 about 15 to 19 years, fertility, Korea, and rate.

The South Korean government allocated about 19.7 trillion South Korean won to address the declining fertility rate, which was a 22 percent increase compared to the previous year's budget. The budget was mainly allocated to support housing and related issues, followed by policies to improve work-family balance.

Korea Crude Birth Rate: per 1000 Persons data was reported at 7.000 NA in 2050. This stayed constant from the previous number of 7.000 NA for 2049. Korea Crude Birth Rate: per 1000 Persons data is updated yearly, averaging 8.200 NA from Jun 1990 (Median) to 2050, with 61 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 16.900 NA in 1992 and a record low of 6.800 NA in 2045. Korea Crude Birth Rate: per 1000 Persons data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by US Census Bureau. The data is categorized under Global Database’s South Korea – Table KR.US Census Bureau: Demographic Projection.

South Korea: The number of births per 1000 people, per year: The latest value from is births per 1000 people, unavailable from births per 1000 people in . In comparison, the world average is 0.00 births per 1000 people, based on data from countries. Historically, the average for South Korea from to is births per 1000 people. The minimum value, births per 1000 people, was reached in while the maximum of births per 1000 people was recorded in .

Korea Birth Rate: Crude: per 1000 People data was reported at 7.900 Ratio in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 8.600 Ratio for 2015. Korea Birth Rate: Crude: per 1000 People data is updated yearly, averaging 16.000 Ratio from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 42.266 Ratio in 1960 and a record low of 7.900 Ratio in 2016. Korea Birth Rate: Crude: per 1000 People data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Korea – Table KR.World Bank: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Crude birth rate indicates the number of live births occurring during the year, per 1,000 population estimated at midyear. Subtracting the crude death rate from the crude birth rate provides the rate of natural increase, which is equal to the rate of population change in the absence of migration.; ; (1) United Nations Population Division. World Population Prospects: 2017 Revision. (2) Census reports and other statistical publications from national statistical offices, (3) Eurostat: Demographic Statistics, (4) United Nations Statistical Division. Population and Vital Statistics Reprot (various years), (5) U.S. Census Bureau: International Database, and (6) Secretariat of the Pacific Community: Statistics and Demography Programme.; Weighted average;