Elderly people line up to receive free meals outside the Tapgol Park in Seoul, South Korea, 10 July 2026. According to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, the proportion of Seoul’s 9.3 million residents aged 65 or older has exceeded 20 percent, and it is projected that one in three Seoul residents will be 65 or older by 2040. JEON HEON-KYUN/ EPA
July 28 (Asia Today) — South Korea’s elderly population exceeded 20% of the country’s total population for the first time in 2025, while the share of working-age residents fell below 70%, government data showed Tuesday.
The figures illustrate the accelerating transformation of South Korea’s population as low birth rates and rapid aging reduce the number of children and economically active adults.
South Korea’s total population stood at 51.817 million as of Nov. 1, up 12,000, or 0.02%, from a year earlier, according to the 2025 Population and Housing Census released by the National Data Agency.
The number of South Korean nationals declined by 50,000, but the foreign population increased by 70,000, preventing the country’s total population from falling.
Population growth has continued to slow. After declining in 2021 and 2022 during the COVID-19 pandemic, the population increased 0.2% in 2023 and 0.1% in 2024. Growth slowed to 0.02% in 2025.
The number of South Korean nationals has fallen for five consecutive years since 2021, largely because of the country’s persistently low birth rate.
The foreign population rose 3.2% to 2.11 million, driven partly by increases in international students and seasonal workers. Foreign residents accounted for 4.1% of the total population.
Elderly population rises sharply
The number of people age 65 and older increased by 601,000, or 5.9%, to 10.723 million.
Older residents accounted for 20.7% of the population, exceeding the 20% threshold for the first time.
A country is generally classified as a super-aged society when at least 20% of its population is age 65 or older.
By comparison, the population age 14 and younger fell by 196,000 to 5.225 million, representing 10.1% of the total.
The number of older residents was more than twice the number of children.
South Korea’s working-age population, defined as people ages 15 to 64, decreased by 393,000 to 35.87 million.
The group accounted for 69.2% of the population, falling below 70% for the first time since the current census series began in 2015.
The decline could increase pressure on South Korea’s labor market, pension system and healthcare services as fewer working-age people support a growing elderly population.
People in their 50s were the country’s largest age group, accounting for 16.7% of the population. Those in their 60s represented 15.3%, followed by people in their 40s at 14.8%.
South Korea’s median age rose 0.6 year to 46.8.
Nearly 3 in 10 adults unmarried
The census also showed continuing changes in South Korea’s marriage patterns.
Of the country’s 43.234 million South Korean nationals age 18 or older, 12.789 million, or 29.6%, had never married.
The number of unmarried adults increased by 54,000, or 0.4%, from a year earlier.
The never-married rate among people in their 30s stood at 54.7%, meaning more than half of South Koreans in that age group had not married.
Among people in their 40s, the rate was 21.9%.
Seoul recorded the country’s highest never-married rate at 37.1%, while South Jeolla Province had the lowest at 22.2%.
— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI
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