Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million in Republic of Korea
Republic of Korea: Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million was 26.41 million in 2025. ▲ Rising
Latest (2025)
26.41 million
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
15th
of 121 countries
All-time high
26.41 million
in 2025
All-time low
5.46 million
in 1960
Years of data
66
1960–2025
Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million in Republic of Korea, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects 2018, United Nations (UN).
Analysis
Republic of Korea recorded 26.41 million for population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million in 2025. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 3.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million in Republic of Korea peaked at 26.41 million in 2025 and was at its lowest, 5.46 million, in 1960.
Republic of Korea ranks 15th of 121 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million in Republic of Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 5.46 million | — |
| 1961 | 5.78 million | +5.9% |
| 1962 | 6.12 million | +5.9% |
| 1963 | 6.48 million | +5.9% |
| 1964 | 6.86 million | +5.9% |
| 1965 | 7.27 million | +6.0% |
| 1966 | 7.71 million | +6.0% |
| 1967 | 8.26 million | +7.1% |
| 1968 | 8.88 million | +7.5% |
| 1969 | 9.55 million | +7.6% |
| 1970 | 10.28 million | +7.6% |
| 1971 | 10.88 million | +5.8% |
| 1972 | 11.45 million | +5.2% |
| 1973 | 12.05 million | +5.3% |
| 1974 | 12.70 million | +5.3% |
| 1975 | 13.38 million | +5.4% |
| 1976 | 13.96 million | +4.4% |
| 1977 | 14.52 million | +4.0% |
| 1978 | 15.11 million | +4.0% |
| 1979 | 15.71 million | +4.0% |
| 1980 | 16.35 million | +4.0% |
| 1981 | 16.93 million | +3.5% |
| 1982 | 17.48 million | +3.3% |
| 1983 | 18.06 million | +3.3% |
| 1984 | 18.66 million | +3.3% |
| 1985 | 19.28 million | +3.3% |
| 1986 | 19.88 million | +3.1% |
| 1987 | 20.48 million | +3.0% |
| 1988 | 21.10 million | +3.0% |
| 1989 | 21.75 million | +3.1% |
| 1990 | 22.42 million | +3.1% |
| 1991 | 22.72 million | +1.4% |
| 1992 | 22.85 million | +0.5% |
| 1993 | 22.98 million | +0.6% |
| 1994 | 23.12 million | +0.6% |
| 1995 | 23.27 million | +0.7% |
| 1996 | 23.41 million | +0.6% |
| 1997 | 23.55 million | +0.6% |
| 1998 | 23.70 million | +0.7% |
| 1999 | 23.87 million | +0.7% |
| 2000 | 24.06 million | +0.8% |
| 2001 | 24.18 million | +0.5% |
| 2002 | 24.27 million | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 24.37 million | +0.4% |
| 2004 | 24.48 million | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 24.60 million | +0.5% |
| 2006 | 24.67 million | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 24.73 million | +0.2% |
| 2008 | 24.78 million | +0.2% |
| 2009 | 24.84 million | +0.2% |
| 2010 | 24.90 million | +0.2% |
| 2011 | 25.00 million | +0.4% |
| 2012 | 25.12 million | +0.5% |
| 2013 | 25.25 million | +0.5% |
| 2014 | 25.37 million | +0.5% |
| 2015 | 25.50 million | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 25.63 million | +0.5% |
| 2017 | 25.76 million | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 25.89 million | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 25.96 million | +0.3% |
| 2020 | 26.04 million | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 26.11 million | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 26.18 million | +0.3% |
| 2023 | 26.26 million | +0.3% |
| 2024 | 26.33 million | +0.3% |
| 2025 | 26.41 million | +0.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 7.24 million | 5.46 million | 9.55 million | 10 |
| 1970s | 13.00 million | 10.28 million | 15.71 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 19.00 million | 16.35 million | 21.75 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 23.19 million | 22.42 million | 23.87 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 24.50 million | 24.06 million | 24.84 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 25.44 million | 24.90 million | 25.96 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 26.22 million | 26.04 million | 26.41 million | 6 |
Countries ranked near Republic of Korea
- 12 Bangladesh 30.31 million compare
- 13 Egypt 28.88 million compare
- 14 Congo, Democratic Republic of the 27.36 million compare
- 16 Colombia 23.80 million compare
- 17 South Africa 23.36 million compare
- 18 Iran, Islamic Republic of 23.31 million compare
More urban development data for Republic of Korea
- Population in the largest city 23.9% (2025)
- Population density 529.84 people per sq. km of land area (2023)
- PM2.5 air pollution, mean annual exposure 21.89 micrograms per cubic meter (2023)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million, per capita 0.511 units per person (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million, annual 0.2996 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million, per unit 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million, per square 269.03 units per square kilometre (2023)
- Population in largest city 10.03 million (2025)
- PM2.5 air pollution, population exposed to levels exceeding WHO 100.0% (2017)
Frequently asked questions
- What is population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million in Republic of Korea?
- Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million in Republic of Korea was 26.41 million in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects 2018, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million recorded in Republic of Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 26.41 million in 2025.
- What is the lowest population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million recorded in Republic of Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.46 million in 1960.
- How does Republic of Korea rank for population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million?
- Republic of Korea ranks 15th out of 121 countries with data for 2025.
- Is population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million rising or falling in Republic of Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Republic of Korea data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects 2018, United Nations (UN), published as part of Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Population in urban agglomerations of more than one million is the country's population living in metropolitan areas that in 2018 had a population of more than one million people.