South Korea's birth rate, 1960 to 2024

South Korea's fertility rate collapsed from 5.99 births per woman in 1960 to 0.75 in 2024, the lowest of the four countries charted, below Japan's 1.15.

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What the data shows

South Korea: 5.99 in 1960, 0.75 in 2024 (87% lower). Its low point was 0.72 in 2023.
Japan: 2.00 in 1960, 1.15 in 2024 (43% lower). It peaked at 2.23 in 1967.
China: 4.45 in 1960, 1.01 in 2024 (77% lower). It peaked at 7.51 in 1963.
United States: 3.65 in 1960, 1.63 in 2024 (55% lower). Its low point was 1.62 in 2023.

About this chart

In 1960 the average South Korean woman would have had 5.99 children. By 1980 that was 2.82, by 1990 it was 1.57, and it kept falling to 1.23 in 2010, 0.84 in 2020 and 0.75 in 2024. A fall of more than five births per woman in 64 years is steeper than any of the other countries charted. Japan went from 2.0 to 1.15, the United States from 3.65 to 1.63 and China from 4.45 to 1.01.

The measure is the total fertility rate, the average number of children a woman would have in her lifetime at current age-specific birth rates, from the World Bank. A rate of about 2.1 is usually needed for a population to replace itself without migration, so 0.75 is well below that. South Korea's 1990 rate of 1.57 was already near Japan's 1.54, and the two have moved apart since: South Korea is now 0.40 below Japan.

The data

Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (SP.DYN.TFRT.IN), births per woman. Retrieved November 4, 2026.

South Korea's birth rate, Births per woman (total fertility rate), 1960–2024
Date	🇰🇷 South Korea	🇯🇵 Japan	🇨🇳 China	🇺🇸 United States
1960	5.99	2.00	4.45	3.65
1961	5.80	1.96	3.86	3.62
1962	5.56	1.98	6.08	3.46
1963	5.33	2.00	7.51	3.32
1964	5.07	2.05	6.67	3.19
1965	4.89	2.14	6.61	2.91
1966	4.78	1.58	6.31	2.72
1967	4.62	2.23	5.81	2.56
1968	4.51	2.13	6.51	2.46
1969	4.45	2.13	6.17	2.46
1970	4.53	2.13	6.08	2.48
1971	4.54	2.16	5.52	2.27
1972	4.12	2.14	5.11	2.01
1973	4.07	2.14	4.73	1.88
1974	3.77	2.05	4.17	1.83
1975	3.43	1.91	3.57	1.77
1976	3.00	1.85	3.23	1.74
1977	2.99	1.80	2.84	1.79
1978	2.64	1.79	2.72	1.76
1979	2.90	1.77	2.75	1.81
1980	2.82	1.75	2.74	1.84
1981	2.57	1.74	2.79	1.81
1982	2.39	1.77	2.97	1.83
1983	2.06	1.80	2.56	1.80
1984	1.74	1.81	2.61	1.81
1985	1.66	1.76	2.63	1.84
1986	1.58	1.72	2.72	1.84
1987	1.53	1.69	2.76	1.87
1988	1.55	1.66	2.54	1.93
1989	1.56	1.57	2.52	2.01
1990	1.57	1.54	2.51	2.08
1991	1.71	1.53	1.93	2.06
1992	1.76	1.50	1.78	2.05
1993	1.65	1.46	1.69	2.02
1994	1.66	1.50	1.63	2.00
1995	1.63	1.42	1.59	1.98
1996	1.57	1.43	1.55	1.98
1997	1.54	1.39	1.53	1.97
1998	1.46	1.38	1.52	2.00
1999	1.43	1.34	1.53	2.01
2000	1.48	1.36	1.63	2.06
2001	1.31	1.33	1.56	2.03
2002	1.18	1.32	1.57	2.02
2003	1.19	1.29	1.57	2.05
2004	1.16	1.29	1.60	2.05
2005	1.08	1.26	1.62	2.06
2006	1.13	1.32	1.64	2.11
2007	1.26	1.34	1.67	2.12
2008	1.19	1.37	1.70	2.07
2009	1.15	1.37	1.71	2.00
2010	1.23	1.39	1.69	1.93
2011	1.24	1.39	1.67	1.89
2012	1.30	1.41	1.80	1.88
2013	1.19	1.43	1.71	1.86
2014	1.21	1.42	1.77	1.86
2015	1.24	1.45	1.67	1.84
2016	1.17	1.44	1.77	1.82
2017	1.05	1.43	1.79	1.77
2018	0.98	1.42	1.54	1.73
2019	0.92	1.36	1.50	1.71
2020	0.84	1.33	1.24	1.64
2021	0.81	1.30	1.12	1.66
2022	0.78	1.26	1.03	1.66
2023	0.72	1.20	1.00	1.62
2024	0.75	1.15	1.01	1.63

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Frequently asked questions

What is South Korea's birth rate?

South Korea's total fertility rate was 0.75 births per woman in 2024, down from 0.84 in 2020 and 1.23 in 2010. It is the lowest value of the four countries in this chart.

How low is South Korea's fertility rate compared with Japan and China?

South Korea's 0.75 in 2024 is below Japan's 1.15 and China's 1.01. It is also well under the United States' 1.63. In 1960 South Korea was at 5.99, above China's 4.45.

When did South Korea's fertility rate fall below 2?

Between 1980 and 1990. The rate was 2.82 in 1980 and 1.57 in 1990. It has stayed below 1.6 in every year charted since.

Where does this data come from?

World Bank, World Development Indicators (SP.DYN.TFRT.IN), births per woman. Retrieved November 4, 2026. You can download the full table as a CSV from this page.

Can I turn this chart into a video?

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