North Korea vs South Korea
South Korea has 1.9× the population of North Korea: 51,684,564 vs 26,571,036, a gap of 25.1 million. North Korea is growing faster (+0.27% vs −0.13% a year), adding about 72,311 people a year against −66,458. Using continuous exponential growth from the stated base year, if these rates held, North Korea would overtake South Korea in about 166 years (from the 2025 population bases, around 2191) — a projection, not a forecast. South Korea is the older society: 20.3% aged 65+ against 12.7% in North Korea, while North Korea has more children (18.9% under 15 vs 10.2%). South Korea is 2.4× as densely populated (529.8 vs 219.4 people per km²). People in South Korea live 9.9 years longer on average (83.6 vs 73.7).
Country/territory population bases: World Bank 2025 (North Korea) and 2025 (South Korea); growth years 2025 / 2025. Annual source values, not live counts; years may differ. Growth is national, not local.
North Korea vs South Korea — side by side
 North Korea |  South Korea | |
|---|---|---|
| Population | 26,571,0362025 | 51,684,5642025 |
| Growth rate / yr | +0.27%2025 | −0.13%2025 |
| Births per 1,000 | 12.92024 | 4.72024 |
| Deaths per 1,000 | 9.92024 | 7.02024 |
| Children per woman | 1.782024 | 0.752024 |
| Life expectancy | 73.7 yrs2024 | 83.6 yrs2024 |
| Aged 0–14 | 18.9%2025 | 10.2%2025 |
| Aged 65+ | 12.7%2025 | 20.3%2025 |
| Density | 219.4 /km²2023 | 529.8 /km²2023 |
| Area | 120,540 km²2023 | 100,450 km²2023 |
| Urban population | 64.2%2025 | 81.2%2025 |
| Net migration / yr | -2,7872025 | +65,7312025 |
| GDP per capita | —year not supplied | $36,2272025 |
| Country population rank (available records) | #56 | #29 |
| Base / world population (World Bank 2025) | 0.32% | 0.63% |
Highlighted cell = the higher value (not "better"). Small print under each value is its own data year. Source: World Bank; country/territory population bases may have different years. These are not live counts.
Population since 1960
World Bank population history (not the separate UN WPP timeline). North Korea: 2.3× from 1960 to 2025; South Korea: 2.1× from 1960 to 2025. Left: absolute population. Right: each series indexed to its own first available year = 100; baseline years may differ.
More comparisons
Region: East Asia & Pacific · rankings
North Korea: North Korea vs South Korea, North Korea vs Venezuela, North Korea vs Niger, North Korea vs Australia, North Korea vs Syria, North Korea vs Mali, North Korea vs Burkina Faso.
South Korea: South Korea vs India, South Korea vs China, South Korea vs United States, South Korea vs Indonesia, South Korea vs Pakistan, South Korea vs Nigeria, South Korea vs Brazil, South Korea vs Bangladesh.
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