Japan vs South Korea: Patent applications, residents

Japan
222,452
in 2021
South Korea
186,245
in 2021
Japan rank
3rd
South Korea rank
4th

Patent applications, residents over time

  • Japan
  • South Korea
0100.0k200.0k300.0k400.0k198020002021

How they compare

Japan currently reports 222,452 against 186,245 in South Korea, a difference of 36,207.

That makes Japan's figure about 1.2 times South Korea's.

Across all 40 years both countries report, Japan has been ahead every year.

Japan ranks 3rd and South Korea ranks 4th of 135 countries.

Japan has averaged higher in every one of the 5 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade Japan South Korea Difference Ahead
1980s 268,962 3,596 265,366 Japan
1990s 340,455 38,985 301,470 Japan
2000s 354,413 104,947 249,466 Japan
2010s 268,074 156,597 111,477 Japan
2020s 224,900 183,361 41,539 Japan

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher patent applications, residents, Japan or South Korea?
Japan, at 222,452 against 186,245 in South Korea as of 2021.
What is the difference in patent applications, residents between Japan and South Korea?
36,207, with Japan ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Japan and South Korea?
40 years are reported by both, from 1980 to 2021.
How do Japan and South Korea rank globally for patent applications, residents?
Japan ranks 3rd 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

Indicator
Patent applications, residents
Source
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
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
147 places, 4,224 data points, 1980–2021
Last refreshed

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.