Age distribution in South Korea 2021

In South Korea, approximately 71.46 percent of the population was between 15 and 64 years old in 2021, while those above the age of 64 made up around 16.65 percent. The youngest generation made up an even smaller percentage than the elderly, but were the only group that did not increase in size over the last decade, partly due to a decrease in births since 2007.

Reasons for fewer children

While it is not always the case that family sizes shrink when there are less births per woman, the fertility rate in South Korea is undisputably decreasing overall and less children are born. The reasons people cite for having fewer children vary greatly by gender and marital status in South Korea: For example, more married people than singles - and of those more married women than men - say that the difficulty of maintaining a work life balance is the largest concern for them. Meanwhile, men express more economic concerns about child support, and notably more singles nowadays say they feel no need to have children.