Proportion of individuals using the Internet in South Korea
South Korea: Proportion of individuals using the Internet was 97.9% in 2024. ▲ Rising
Proportion of individuals using the Internet in South Korea, 2000–2024
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database.
Analysis
South Korea recorded 97.9% for proportion of individuals using the internet in 2024. That is the highest value across all 25 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.5% on the previous year and up 11.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, proportion of individuals using the internet in South Korea peaked at 97.9% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 44.7%, in 2000.
South Korea ranks 15th of 236 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 25 years of available data.
Proportion of individuals using the Internet in South Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 44.7% | — |
| 2001 | 56.6% | +26.6% |
| 2002 | 59.4% | +4.9% |
| 2003 | 65.5% | +10.3% |
| 2004 | 72.7% | +11.0% |
| 2005 | 73.5% | +1.1% |
| 2006 | 78.1% | +6.3% |
| 2007 | 78.8% | +0.9% |
| 2008 | 81.0% | +2.8% |
| 2009 | 81.6% | +0.7% |
| 2010 | 83.7% | +2.6% |
| 2011 | 83.8% | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 84.1% | +0.4% |
| 2013 | 84.8% | +0.8% |
| 2014 | 87.6% | +3.3% |
| 2015 | 89.9% | +2.6% |
| 2016 | 92.8% | +3.2% |
| 2017 | 95.1% | +2.5% |
| 2018 | 96.0% | +0.9% |
| 2019 | 96.2% | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 96.5% | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 97.6% | +1.1% |
| 2022 | 97.2% | -0.4% |
| 2023 | 97.4% | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 97.9% | +0.5% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 97.9% is above the median for high income countries, which is 92.7%, 1.1× the median. (75 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 97.9% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 80.5%, 1.2× the median. (31 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Proportion of individuals using the Internet in South Korea changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | +26.6% | 44.7% | 56.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 69.2% | 44.7% | 81.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 89.4% | 83.7% | 96.2% | 10 |
| 2020s | 97.3% | 96.5% | 97.9% | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
- 12 Iceland 98.2% compare
- 13 Qatar 98.1% compare
- 14 Malaysia 98.0% compare
- 15 Republic of Korea 97.9% compare
- 17 Faroe Islands 97.6% compare
- 18 San Marino 97.4% compare
More science & technology data for South Korea
- Mobile landline subscriptions, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile landline subscriptions, gaps filled 172.52 (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per capita 1.72 units per person (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, gaps filled 89.22 million (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, per square kilometre 859.55 units per square kilometre (2023)
- Mobile landline subscriptions, annual growth rate 6.42 % change on previous year (2024)
- Mobile cellular subscriptions by country, annual growth rate 6.36 % change on previous year (2024)
- Scientific and technical journal articles 71,724 (2023)
- Scientific and technical journal articles, per capita 0.0014 units per person (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is proportion of individuals using the internet in South Korea?
- Proportion of individuals using the internet in South Korea was 97.9% in 2024, according to United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database.
- What is the highest proportion of individuals using the internet recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 97.9% in 2024.
- What is the lowest proportion of individuals using the internet recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 44.7% in 2000.
- How does South Korea rank for proportion of individuals using the internet?
- South Korea ranks 15th out of 236 countries with data for 2024.
- Is proportion of individuals using the internet rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from United Nations Statistics Division, SDG Global Database, published as part of Proportion of individuals using the Internet (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 25 observations, free to reuse under UN SDG Global Database (open, attribution requested).