Income inequality: Atkinson index in South Korea
South Korea: Income inequality: Atkinson index was 0.1642 in 2023. ▼ Falling
Income inequality: Atkinson index in South Korea, 2010–2023
Source: UNDP, Human Development Report (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2023, income inequality: atkinson index in South Korea stood at 0.1642.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 2.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, income inequality: atkinson index in South Korea peaked at 0.1753 in 2010 and was at its lowest, 0.1636, in 2014.
South Korea ranks 143rd of 174 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 14 years of available data.
Income inequality: Atkinson index in South Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 0.1753 | — |
| 2011 | 0.1753 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 0.1689 | -3.7% |
| 2013 | 0.1689 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 0.1636 | -3.2% |
| 2015 | 0.1636 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 0.1642 | +0.4% |
| 2017 | 0.1642 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 0.1642 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 0.1642 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 0.1642 | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 0.1642 | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 0.1642 | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 0.1642 | +0.0% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 0.1642 is below the median for high income countries, which is 0.1703, 96% of the median. (54 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 0.1642 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.2171, 76% of the median. (29 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 0.1673 | 0.1636 | 0.1753 | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.1642 | 0.1642 | 0.1642 | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
- 140 United Kingdom 0.167 compare
- 141 Seychelles 0.1656 compare
- 142 Luxembourg 0.1644 compare
- 144 East Timor 0.1608 compare
- 145 Canada 0.1598 compare
- 146 Estonia 0.1567 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 income inequality: atkinson index in South Korea?
- Income inequality: atkinson index in South Korea was 0.1642 in 2023, according to UNDP, Human Development Report (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest income inequality: atkinson index recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 0.1753 in 2010.
- What is the lowest income inequality: atkinson index recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.1636 in 2014.
- How does South Korea rank for income inequality: atkinson index?
- South Korea ranks 143rd out of 174 countries with data for 2023.
- Is income inequality: atkinson index rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from UNDP, Human Development Report (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Income inequality: Atkinson index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 14 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
The Atkinson index measures inequality on a scale from 0 to 1. Higher values indicate higher inequality. Depending on the country and year, the data relates to income measured after taxes and benefits, or to consumption, per capita.