Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in Korea
Korea: Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income was 12.6% in 2021. ▲ Rising
Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in Korea, 2006–2021
Source: World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income econ. Measured in %.
Analysis
Korea recorded 12.6% for proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in 2021.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.4% on the previous year and up 2.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in Korea peaked at 15.5% in 2016 and was at its lowest, 12.3%, in 2010.
That places Korea 50th out of 123 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 11 years of available data.
Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in Korea, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 12.8% | — |
| 2008 | 12.9% | +0.8% |
| 2010 | 12.3% | -4.7% |
| 2012 | 12.8% | +4.1% |
| 2014 | 12.3% | -3.9% |
| 2016 | 15.5% | +26.0% |
| 2017 | 15.3% | -1.3% |
| 2018 | 14.2% | -7.2% |
| 2019 | 13.5% | -4.9% |
| 2020 | 12.3% | -8.9% |
| 2021 | 12.6% | +2.4% |
Korea compared with similar countries
- Korea's 12.6% is above the median for high income countries, which is 11.6%, 1.1× the median. (42 countries reporting)
- Korea's 12.6% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 11.3%, 1.1× the median. (11 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 12.9% | 12.8% | 12.9% | 2 |
| 2010s | 13.7% | 12.3% | 15.5% | 7 |
| 2020s | 12.4% | 12.3% | 12.6% | 2 |
Countries ranked near Korea
More poverty & inequality data for 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 proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in Korea?
- Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income in Korea was 12.6% in 2021, according to World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income econ.
- What is the highest proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income recorded in Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 15.5% in 2016.
- What is the lowest proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income recorded in Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 12.3% in 2010.
- How does Korea rank for proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income?
- Korea ranks 50th out of 123 countries with data for 2021.
- Is proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income rising or falling in Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Korea data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank, Poverty and Inequality Platform. Data are based on primary household survey data obtained from government statistical agencies and World Bank country departments. Data for high-income econ, published as part of Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
The percentage of people in the population who live in households whose per capita income or consumption is below half of the median income or consumption per capita. The median is measured at 2021 Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) using the Poverty and Inequality Platform (http://www.pip.worldbank.org). For some countries, medians are not reported due to grouped and/or confidential data. The reference year is the year in which the underlying household survey data was collected. In cases for which the data collection period bridged two calendar years, the first year in which data were collected is reported.