The statistic shows the adult mortality rate in North Korea from 2013 to 2023, by gender. According to the source, the adult mortality rate is the probability of dying between the ages of ** and ** - that is, the probability of a 15-year-old dying before reaching age **, if subject to age-specific mortality rates of the specified year between those ages. In 2023, the mortality rate for women was at ****** per 1,000 female adults, while the mortality rate for men was at ****** per 1,000 male adults in North Korea.

North Korea KP: Death Rate: Crude: per 1000 People data was reported at 8.844 Ratio in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 8.750 Ratio for 2015. North Korea KP: Death Rate: Crude: per 1000 People data is updated yearly, averaging 8.662 Ratio from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 14.165 Ratio in 1960 and a record low of 5.663 Ratio in 1990. North Korea KP: Death 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 North Korea – Table KP.World Bank.WDI: Population and Urbanization Statistics. Crude death rate indicates the number of deaths 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;

Death rate, crude (per 1,000 people) in North Korea was reported at 9.684 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. North Korea - Death rate, crude - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

In 1955, the infant mortality rate in North Korea was estimated to be 121 deaths per thousand live births, meaning that for every thousand children born in North Korea in this year, one eighth would not survive past their first birthday. This figure was recorded during the five year period between 1951 and 1955, which was dominated by the effects of the Korean War; following the war's end and the period of adjustment that followed, North Korea's infant mortality rate fell significantly over the next four decades. However, following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the subsequent cut off of economic aid, infant mortality in North Korea more than doubled in the 1990s. Flooding, famine and drought, exacerbated by the governments inefficient response saw infant mortality rise to 58 deaths per thousand births by the late 1990s. This figure has dropped to just 14 deaths per thousand births since the turn of the millennium, although this rate is seven times higher than that of South Korea.

North Korea KP: Mortality Rate: Infant: Female: per 1000 Live Births data was reported at 12.500 Ratio in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 13.900 Ratio for 2015. North Korea KP: Mortality Rate: Infant: Female: per 1000 Live Births data is updated yearly, averaging 20.000 Ratio from Dec 1990 (Median) to 2017, with 5 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 39.500 Ratio in 2000 and a record low of 12.500 Ratio in 2017. North Korea KP: Mortality Rate: Infant: Female: per 1000 Live Births data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s North Korea – Table KP.World Bank.WDI: Health Statistics. Infant mortality rate, female is the number of female infants dying before reaching one year of age, per 1,000 female live births in a given year.; ; Estimates developed by the UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UNICEF, WHO, World Bank, UN DESA Population Division) at www.childmortality.org.; Weighted average; Given that data on the incidence and prevalence of diseases are frequently unavailable, mortality rates are often used to identify vulnerable populations. Moreover, they are among the indicators most frequently used to compare socioeconomic development across countries. Under-five mortality rates are higher for boys than for girls in countries in which parental gender preferences are insignificant. Under-five mortality captures the effect of gender discrimination better than infant mortality does, as malnutrition and medical interventions have more significant impacts to this age group. Where female under-five mortality is higher, girls are likely to have less access to resources than boys.

North Korea KP: Mortality Rate Attributed to Unsafe Water, Unsafe Sanitation and Lack of Hygiene: per 100,000 Population data was reported at 1.400 Ratio in 2016. North Korea KP: Mortality Rate Attributed to Unsafe Water, Unsafe Sanitation and Lack of Hygiene: per 100,000 Population data is updated yearly, averaging 1.400 Ratio from Dec 2016 (Median) to 2016, with 1 observations. North Korea KP: Mortality Rate Attributed to Unsafe Water, Unsafe Sanitation and Lack of Hygiene: per 100,000 Population data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s North Korea – Table KP.World Bank: Health Statistics. Mortality rate attributed to unsafe water, unsafe sanitation and lack of hygiene is deaths attributable to unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene focusing on inadequate WASH services per 100,000 population. Death rates are calculated by dividing the number of deaths by the total population. In this estimate, only the impact of diarrhoeal diseases, intestinal nematode infections, and protein-energy malnutrition are taken into account.; ; World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/).; Weighted average;

In 2022, the mortality rate of children under five years old in South Korea amounted to ***** per *** thousand live births. The under-five mortality rate in North Korea was ** per *** thousand live births in the same year. Although the under-five mortality rate in North Korea has declined in recent years, it is still much higher compared to South Korea.

In 1900, the child mortality rate in the area of present-day North Korea was estimated to be almost five hundred deaths per thousand live births, meaning that approximately half of all children born at this time were not expected to survive past their fifth birthday. This rate would increase to 524 deaths per thousand births in the 1910s, before rapidly falling from the 1910s until the middle of the century (following the Japanese annexation of the peninsula in 1910). There was a slight increase in child mortality rates in the late 1940s, as the Korean peninsula was divided into two states; although it continued upon its rapid decline in the 1950s, with the decrease slowing in the next three decades.

This decline would continue steadily until the 1990s, when the collapse of the Soviet Union and the resulting cut-off of economic aid would cause child mortality to rise for a decade, and this was exacerbated by the flooding, drought, famine and economic mismanagement of the late 1990s. The past two decades, however, have seen child mortality fall once more, and in 2020, it is estimated that for every thousand children born in North Korea, over 98 percent will make it past the age of five.

Graph and download economic data for Infant Mortality Rate for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (SPDYNIMRTINPRK) from 1960 to 2023 about North Korea, mortality, infant, and rate.

UNICEF's country profile for Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, including under-five mortality rates, child health, education and sanitation data.

Mortality rate, infant, male (per 1,000 live births) in North Korea was reported at 16.1 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. North Korea - Mortality rate, infant, male (per 1,000 live births) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

Mortality rate, under-5, female (per 1,000 live births) in North Korea was reported at 16.1 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. North Korea - Mortality rate, under-5, female (per 1,000 live births) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

North Korea KP: Mortality Rate: Under-5: Female: per 1000 Live Births data was reported at 17.200 Ratio in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 19.000 Ratio for 2015. North Korea KP: Mortality Rate: Under-5: Female: per 1000 Live Births data is updated yearly, averaging 26.900 Ratio from Dec 1990 (Median) to 2017, with 5 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 55.800 Ratio in 2000 and a record low of 17.200 Ratio in 2017. North Korea KP: Mortality Rate: Under-5: Female: per 1000 Live Births data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s North Korea – Table KP.World Bank: Health Statistics. Under-five mortality rate, female is the probability per 1,000 that a newborn female baby will die before reaching age five, if subject to female age-specific mortality rates of the specified year.; ; Estimates Developed by the UN Inter-agency Group for Child Mortality Estimation (UNICEF, WHO, World Bank, UN DESA Population Division) at www.childmortality.org.; Weighted average; Given that data on the incidence and prevalence of diseases are frequently unavailable, mortality rates are often used to identify vulnerable populations. Moreover, they are among the indicators most frequently used to compare socioeconomic development across countries. Under-five mortality rates are higher for boys than for girls in countries in which parental gender preferences are insignificant. Under-five mortality captures the effect of gender discrimination better than infant mortality does, as malnutrition and medical interventions have more significant impacts to this age group. Where female under-five mortality is higher, girls are likely to have less access to resources than boys.

Mortality rate, under-5, male (per 1,000 live births) in North Korea was reported at 19.8 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. North Korea - Mortality rate, under-5, male (per 1,000 live births) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

Tuberculosis death rate (per 100,000 people) in North Korea was reported at 80 % in 2018, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. North Korea - Tuberculosis death rate (per 100,000 people) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

Mortality rate, infant (per 1,000 live births) in North Korea was reported at 14.5 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. North Korea - Mortality rate, infant (per 1,000 live births) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

In 1890, the average person born in the area of present-day North Korea could expect to live to 26 years old, a rate which would see only marginal change until the annexation of the Korean peninsula by the Empire of Japan in 1910. As Japanese large scale industrialization and modernization reforms would begin in the peninsula (building on the Gwangmu reforms of the previous administration), life expectancy would begin to increase rapidly as standards of living rose across the region. As a result, life expectancy would rise by twenty years between 1920 and 1940, however this growth would slow during the 1940s, as Korea lost approximately half a million people (or 2% of its population) during the Second World War. Following the war, the peninsula was split into two separate states, with the north and south each administered by the Soviet Union and the U.S. respectively (although both militaries had largely left the peninsula within a few years). In 1950, as tensions grew between the two governments regarding the legitimate rulers of the peninsula, North Korea invaded the South and set in motion the Korean War. The war would last for three years, and result in the deaths of approximately three million Koreans (with the North suffering heavier losses than the South); this caused the life expectancy in North Korea to plummet from over 49 years to less than 38 years in the first half of the 1950s.

Life expectancy in North Korea would quickly recover in the post-war years, as the Soviet Union would provide significant economic aid to the country. As a result, life expectancy would return to pre-war levels by the end of the decade and resume its steady rise until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. After peaking at 70 years in the early 1990s, it is estimated that life expectancy fell by nearly seven years in the early 1990s as the country would face extreme medical and food shortages following the end of Soviet aid. U.S. estimates put the death toll of these famines at more than half a million people in the 1990s. In the past two decades, life expectancy has slowly increased once more in North Korea, returning to pre-famine levels once more in 2015, and it is now estimated that the life expectancy from birth in North Korea in 2020 is approximately 72 years old.

Mortality rate, neonatal (per 1,000 live births) in North Korea was reported at 9.6 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. North Korea - Mortality rate; neonatal (per 1;000 live births) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on June of 2025.

The crude birth rate in North Korea decreased to 12.95 live births per 1,000 inhabitants compared to the previous year. In 2023, the rate thereby reached its lowest value in recent years. The crude birth rate is the annual number of live births in a given population, expressed per 1,000 people. When looked at in unison with the crude death rate, the rate of natural increase can be determined.

Mortality rate, under-5 (per 1,000 live births) in North Korea was reported at 18 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. North Korea - Mortality rate, under-5 (per 1,000) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on June of 2025.