Home Compare South Korea vs Yemen

South Korea vs Yemen

South Korea and Yemen side by side: live population, demographics, economy, environment and digital indicators from the UN and the World Bank, plus charts that overlay the full history of both countries. Change either country to compare any pair.

At a glance

Live population · UN WPP
Flag of South Korea

South Korea

Asia · #31 of 238 by population
Live population
51,580,074
-0.1% a year · full profile · atlas
vs
Flag of Yemen

Yemen

Asia · #37 of 238 by population
Live population
43,302,877
+2.8% a year · full profile · atlas
South Korea has 1.2× the population of Yemen (54.4% vs 45.6% of the two combined).

South Korea vs Yemen: 28 indicators side by side

Latest available figures · October 2026
IndicatorSouth KoreaYemenDifference
👥 Population
Population
people
51,580,07443,302,877South Korea 1.2×
Population growth rate
% per year
-0.1+2.8-2.9 pts
Population density
people per km²
513.52026822026+431.5
Surface area
km²
100,4502023527,9702023Yemen 5.3×
Birth rate
births per 1,000 people
4.7202434.42024-29.7
Death rate
deaths per 1,000 people
720244.72024+2.3
Net migration rate
per 1,000 people per year
+1.2-0.5+1.7
Urban population
% of population
81.22025372025+44.1 pts
Sex ratio
males per 100 females
99.4102.7-3.3
❤️ Demographics & Health
Life expectancy
years
83.6202469.42024+14.2
Fertility rate
births per woman
0.7520244.52024-3.75
Median age
years
46.218.5+27.7
Infant mortality
deaths per 1,000 live births
1.929.9-28
Population under 15
% of population
10.22025412025-30.8 pts
Population aged 65+
% of population
20.320252.52025+17.8 pts
💰 Economy
GDP
current US$
$1.87T2025$21.61B2018South Korea 87×
GDP per capita
current US$
$36,2272025$6342018South Korea 57×
Unemployment rate
% of labor force
2.7202517.32025-14.6 pts
Inflation rate
% annual, consumer prices
2.120258.12014-6 pts
🌱 Environment & Energy
CO₂ emissions
Mt CO₂ per year
588202410.582024South Korea 56×
CO₂ emissions per capita
tonnes per person
11.3620240.262024+11.1
Energy use per capita
kg of oil equivalent per person
5,43920241552023South Korea 35×
Renewable energy share
% of final energy
3.620213.72021-0.1 pts
Forest area
% of land area
64.1202312023+63.1 pts
Freshwater resources per capita
m³ per person per year
1,2552022552022South Korea 23×
Water stress
% of resources withdrawn
452022169.82022-124.7 pts
📶 Digital
Internet users
% of population
97.9202417.52019+80.4 pts
Mobile subscriptions
per 100 people
172.5202450.92023+121.6

▲ marks the higher value (for death rate, infant mortality, unemployment, inflation, CO₂ and water stress: the lower value). "Difference" is the ratio for absolute measures and South Korea minus Yemen for rates and shares. Years in grey are the latest available for that country.

South Korea compared with Yemen

Updated October 2026

South Korea has a live population of about 51,580,074 (#31 in the world) and Yemen about 43,302,877 (#37), so South Korea has 1.2 times as many people as Yemen. South Korea is growing at -0.1% a year and Yemen at 2.8%.

By area Yemen is larger: 527,970 km² against 100,450 km², which gives population densities of 513.5 people per km² in South Korea and 82 in Yemen.

South Korea's economy is worth $1.87T (2025) and Yemen's $21.61B (2018); per person that is $36,227 in South Korea versus $634 in Yemen, so the average South Korea resident produces 57.2 times as much.

Life expectancy is 83.6 years in South Korea and 69.4 in Yemen; women have 0.7 children on average in South Korea compared with 4.5 in Yemen; the median age is 46.2 versus 18.5 years.

81.2% of South Korea's people live in cities against 37% in Yemen; 97.9% use the internet in South Korea and 17.5% in Yemen; CO₂ emissions per person are 11.4 t in South Korea and 0.3 t in Yemen.

Population over time

South Korea vs Yemen
South KoreaYemen

Life expectancy & fertility

South Korea vs Yemen
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Birth & death rates

South Korea vs Yemen
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Age structure

South Korea vs Yemen
South KoreaYemen

CO₂ emissions

South Korea vs Yemen
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Energy use & renewables

South Korea vs Yemen
South KoreaYemen

Forest area

South Korea vs Yemen
South KoreaYemen

Urban population

South Korea vs Yemen
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Water resources & stress

South Korea vs Yemen
South KoreaYemen

Economy

South Korea vs Yemen
South KoreaYemen

Unemployment & inflation

South Korea vs Yemen
South KoreaYemen

Internet & mobile

South Korea vs Yemen
South KoreaYemen

Frequently asked questions

Which is bigger, South Korea or Yemen?

By population South Korea is bigger: 51,580,074 people versus 43,302,877 (live estimates, October 2026). By area Yemen is larger (527,970 km² vs 100,450 km²).

Which has the larger economy, South Korea or Yemen?

South Korea: GDP of $1,872,374,961,553 versus $21,606,160,663 in current US dollars (World Bank, 2025/2018).

Where do people live longer, South Korea or Yemen?

Life expectancy at birth is 83.6 years in South Korea and 69.4 years in Yemen, a difference of 14.2 years in favour of South Korea.

How are these comparisons calculated?

Live populations extrapolate the UN World Population Prospects baseline with each country's growth rate; every other figure is the latest value published by World Bank Open Data (or the UN for median age, infant mortality and migration). Each row shows the year of the figure, and the charts below overlay the full historical series of both countries.

Explore more

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More comparisons with South Korea
More comparisons with Yemen

Sources & method: live populations are linear extrapolations of the UN World Population Prospects estimates; all other indicators are the latest values from World Bank Open Data (UN WPP for median age, infant mortality, sex ratio and net migration). Figures are statistical estimates, not census counts. Page generated 2026-10-19. More about our data.