China vs South Korea: Patent applications, residents
Patent applications, residents over time
- China
- South Korea
How they compare
China currently reports 1.43 million against 186,245 in South Korea, a difference of 1.24 million.
That makes China's figure about 7.7 times South Korea's.
The two have swapped places 2 times across 37 shared years of data; in 1985 it was China ahead.
China ranks 1st and South Korea ranks 4th of 135 countries.
Across the 5 decades both report, China averaged higher in 2 and South Korea in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | South Korea | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 4,213 | 4,786 | 573.2 | South Korea |
| 1990s | 11,019 | 38,985 | 27,966 | South Korea |
| 2000s | 101,028 | 104,947 | 3,919 | South Korea |
| 2010s | 880,661 | 156,597 | 724,064 | China |
| 2020s | 1.39 million | 183,361 | 1.20 million | China |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher patent applications, residents, China or South Korea?
- China, at 1.43 million against 186,245 in South Korea as of 2021.
- What is the difference in patent applications, residents between China and South Korea?
- 1.24 million, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and South Korea?
- 37 years are reported by both, from 1985 to 2021.
- How do China and South Korea rank globally for patent applications, residents?
- China ranks 1st and South Korea ranks 4th of 135 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- WIPO Patent Report: Statistics on Worldwide Patent Activity, World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), note: The International Bureau of WIPO assumes no responsibility with respect to the trans, published as Patent applications, residents. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Patent applications are worldwide patent applications filed through the Patent Cooperation Treaty procedure or with a national patent office for exclusive rights for an invention--a product or process that provides a new way of doing something or offers a new technical solution to a problem. A patent provides protection for the invention to the owner of the patent for a limited period, generally 20 years.