Primary education, pupils in South Korea
South Korea: Primary education, pupils was 2.51 million in 2024. ▼ Falling
Primary education, pupils in South Korea, 1971–2024
Source: Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
Analysis
South Korea recorded 2.51 million for primary education, pupils in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 54 years on record.
That represents a change of down 4.1% on the previous year and down 8.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, primary education, pupils in South Korea peaked at 5.81 million in 1972 and was at its lowest, 2.51 million, in 2024.
South Korea ranks 60th of 206 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 54 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5.65 million | 5.50 million | 5.81 million | 9 |
| 1980s | 5.19 million | 4.77 million | 5.66 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.30 million | 3.79 million | 4.89 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.96 million | 3.48 million | 4.19 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.85 million | 2.68 million | 3.31 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.64 million | 2.51 million | 2.70 million | 5 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More education data for South Korea
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 10.2% (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 69.5% (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 100.9% (2024)
- Primary education, teachers 173,133 (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female 100.8% (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, male 101.0% (2024)
- Labor force, female 44.4% (2025)
- Labor force, total 29.87 million (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is primary education, pupils in South Korea?
- Primary education, pupils in South Korea was 2.51 million in 2024, according to Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
- What is the highest primary education, pupils recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 5.81 million in 1972.
- What is the lowest primary education, pupils recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.51 million in 2024.
- How does South Korea rank for primary education, pupils?
- South Korea ranks 60th out of 206 countries with data for 2024.
- Is primary education, pupils rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Data API, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), published as part of Primary education, pupils. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 54 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Primary education pupils is the total number of pupils enrolled at primary level in public and private schools.