Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in South Korea
South Korea: Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty was 0.4% in 2020. ▼ Falling
Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in South Korea, 2003–2020
Source: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of children under 5.
Analysis
In 2020, share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in South Korea stood at 0.4%. That is the lowest value across all 5 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 55.6% on the previous year and down 50.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in South Korea peaked at 1.0% in 2014 and was at its lowest, 0.4%, in 2020.
That places South Korea 95th out of 96 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in South Korea, year by year
| Year | % of children under 5 | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 0.9% | — |
| 2011 | 0.8% | -11.1% |
| 2014 | 1.0% | +25.0% |
| 2017 | 0.9% | -10.0% |
| 2020 | 0.4% | -55.6% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 0.4% is below the median for high income countries, which is 2.8%, 14% of the median. (11 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 0.4% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 15.3%, 3% of the median. (13 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 0.9% | 0.9% | 0.9% | 1 |
| 2010s | 0.9% | 0.8% | 1.0% | 3 |
| 2020s | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 1 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
- 92 Turkey 1.5% compare
- 93 United Kingdom 0.6% compare
- 94 Chile 0.5% compare
- 95 United States 0.4% compare
More poverty & inequality data for South Korea
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via the World Bank 6 surveys (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per person (2025)
- Number of income/consumption surveys in the past decade available via 0 surveys per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Fertility rate vs. share living in extreme poverty 0.72 live births per woman (2023)
- Cereal yield vs. share in extreme poverty 6,615 kg per hectare (2023)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
- Cereal yield vs extreme poverty, annual growth rate 0.0454 % change on previous year (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, gaps filled 26.87 (2023)
- Tax revenue as share of GDP vs. income inequality 26.9% (2023)
- Tax revenues vs income inequality, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in South Korea?
- Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty in South Korea was 0.4% in 2020, according to Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 1.0% in 2014.
- What is the lowest share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.4% in 2020.
- How does South Korea rank for share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty?
- South Korea ranks 95th out of 96 countries with data for 2020.
- Is share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 50.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of children who are underweight vs. share in extreme poverty. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Underweight children are those less than 5 years old, whose weight for age is more than two standard deviations below the median for the international reference population. Extreme poverty is defined as living below the International Poverty Line of $3 per day.