Share of the population in poverty vs. Electoral Democracy Index in South Korea
South Korea: Share of the population in poverty vs. Electoral Democracy Index was 0.8% in 2021. ◆ Volatile
Share of the population in poverty vs. Electoral Democracy Index in South Korea, 2006–2021
Source: World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
South Korea recorded 0.8% for share of the population in poverty vs. electoral democracy index in 2021.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 14.3% on the previous year and down 78.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, share of the population in poverty vs. electoral democracy index in South Korea peaked at 4.1% in 2006 and was at its lowest, 0.7%, in 2020.
South Korea ranks 106th of 120 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Share of the population in poverty vs. Electoral Democracy Index in South Korea, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 4.1% | — |
| 2008 | 3.8% | -7.3% |
| 2010 | 3.8% | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 3.5% | -7.9% |
| 2014 | 2.7% | -22.9% |
| 2016 | 2.1% | -22.2% |
| 2017 | 1.9% | -9.5% |
| 2018 | 1.4% | -26.3% |
| 2019 | 0.9% | -35.7% |
| 2020 | 0.7% | -22.2% |
| 2021 | 0.8% | +14.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 3.9% | 3.8% | 4.1% | 2 |
| 2010s | 2.3% | 0.9% | 3.8% | 7 |
| 2020s | 0.8% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 2 |
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 the population in poverty vs. electoral democracy index in South Korea?
- Share of the population in poverty vs. electoral democracy index in South Korea was 0.8% in 2021, according to World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest share of the population in poverty vs. electoral democracy index recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 4.1% in 2006.
- What is the lowest share of the population in poverty vs. electoral democracy index recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.7% in 2020.
- How does South Korea rank for share of the population in poverty vs. electoral democracy index?
- South Korea ranks 106th out of 120 countries with data for 2021.
- Is share of the population in poverty vs. electoral democracy index rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 78.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from World Bank Poverty and Inequality Platform (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Share of the population in poverty vs. Electoral Democracy Index. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 11 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Percentage of population living in households with an income or consumption below $10 per day.