Share of government consumption in GDP vs. share … population in South Korea
South Korea: Share of government consumption in GDP vs. share … population was 18.6% in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
18.6%
Change on year
up 0.1%
World rank
104th
of 184 countries
All-time high
19.0%
in 1953
All-time low
10.1%
in 1999
Years of data
71
1953–2023
Share of government consumption in GDP vs. share of population living in extreme poverty in South Korea, 1953–2023
Source: Feenstra et al. – Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2023, share of government consumption in gdp vs. share of population living in extreme poverty in South Korea stood at 18.6%.
The figure is up 0.1% on the previous year and up 29.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of government consumption in gdp vs. share of population living in extreme poverty in South Korea peaked at 19.0% in 1953 and was at its lowest, 10.1%, in 1999.
That places South Korea 104th out of 184 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 71 years of available data.
Share of government consumption in GDP vs. share … population in South Korea, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1953 | 19.0% | — |
| 1954 | 18.1% | -5.0% |
| 1955 | 17.8% | -1.6% |
| 1956 | 18.8% | +5.9% |
| 1957 | 17.6% | -6.4% |
| 1958 | 18.2% | +3.1% |
| 1959 | 17.6% | -3.0% |
| 1960 | 17.6% | -0.4% |
| 1961 | 16.6% | -5.6% |
| 1962 | 16.7% | +0.9% |
| 1963 | 15.7% | -6.1% |
| 1964 | 14.4% | -8.1% |
| 1965 | 14.6% | +1.4% |
| 1966 | 14.4% | -1.5% |
| 1967 | 15.0% | +4.2% |
| 1968 | 14.9% | -0.9% |
| 1969 | 14.5% | -2.9% |
| 1970 | 14.3% | -1.0% |
| 1971 | 14.3% | -0.4% |
| 1972 | 14.8% | +4.1% |
| 1973 | 13.4% | -9.6% |
| 1974 | 13.3% | -1.0% |
| 1975 | 13.6% | +1.9% |
| 1976 | 12.3% | -9.3% |
| 1977 | 11.9% | -3.4% |
| 1978 | 11.2% | -5.3% |
| 1979 | 11.0% | -1.9% |
| 1980 | 13.0% | +18.1% |
| 1981 | 13.6% | +4.3% |
| 1982 | 13.2% | -3.0% |
| 1983 | 12.3% | -6.4% |
| 1984 | 12.0% | -2.6% |
| 1985 | 12.1% | +0.7% |
| 1986 | 11.5% | -5.0% |
| 1987 | 11.2% | -2.9% |
| 1988 | 11.0% | -1.4% |
| 1989 | 11.5% | +4.6% |
| 1990 | 11.2% | -2.6% |
| 1991 | 10.7% | -4.3% |
| 1992 | 11.2% | +4.0% |
| 1993 | 11.1% | -0.2% |
| 1994 | 10.8% | -3.2% |
| 1995 | 10.5% | -3.1% |
| 1996 | 10.4% | -0.7% |
| 1997 | 10.2% | -1.3% |
| 1998 | 11.3% | +10.0% |
| 1999 | 10.1% | -10.5% |
| 2000 | 10.1% | +0.3% |
| 2001 | 11.4% | +12.5% |
| 2002 | 12.2% | +7.6% |
| 2003 | 12.0% | -1.8% |
| 2004 | 11.4% | -5.4% |
| 2005 | 11.2% | -1.7% |
| 2006 | 11.5% | +2.6% |
| 2007 | 11.4% | -0.5% |
| 2008 | 11.9% | +3.8% |
| 2009 | 13.0% | +9.2% |
| 2010 | 13.0% | +0.5% |
| 2011 | 13.5% | +4.0% |
| 2012 | 13.6% | +0.7% |
| 2013 | 14.4% | +5.9% |
| 2014 | 15.0% | +3.9% |
| 2015 | 14.4% | -3.7% |
| 2016 | 14.5% | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 14.9% | +2.6% |
| 2018 | 16.4% | +10.2% |
| 2019 | 16.9% | +3.2% |
| 2020 | 18.0% | +6.3% |
| 2021 | 18.5% | +2.9% |
| 2022 | 18.6% | +0.7% |
| 2023 | 18.6% | +0.1% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 18.6% is below the median for high income countries, which is 21.2%, 88% of the median. (66 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 18.6% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 17.6%, 1.1× the median. (19 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 18.2% | 17.6% | 19.0% | 7 |
| 1960s | 15.4% | 14.4% | 17.6% | 10 |
| 1970s | 13.0% | 11.0% | 14.8% | 10 |
| 1980s | 12.1% | 11.0% | 13.6% | 10 |
| 1990s | 10.8% | 10.1% | 11.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 11.6% | 10.1% | 13.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 14.7% | 13.0% | 16.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 18.4% | 18.0% | 18.6% | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
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 government consumption in gdp vs. share of population living in extreme poverty in South Korea?
- Share of government consumption in gdp vs. share of population living in extreme poverty in South Korea was 18.6% in 2023, according to Feenstra et al. – Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of government consumption in gdp vs. share of population living in extreme poverty recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 19.0% in 1953.
- What is the lowest share of government consumption in gdp vs. share of population living in extreme poverty recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 10.1% in 1999.
- How does South Korea rank for share of government consumption in gdp vs. share of population living in extreme poverty?
- South Korea ranks 104th out of 184 countries with data for 2023.
- Is share of government consumption in gdp vs. share of population living in extreme poverty rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 29.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Feenstra et al. – Penn World Table (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of government consumption in GDP vs. share of population living in extreme poverty. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Government consumption divided by gross domestic product, expressed as a percentage.