Armed forces personnel, total, gaps filled in Republic of Korea
Republic of Korea: Armed forces personnel, total, gaps filled was 569,000 in 2020. ▼ Falling
Armed forces personnel, total, gaps filled in Republic of Korea, 1985–2020
Source: Statizoid (derived).
Analysis
Republic of Korea recorded 569,000 for armed forces personnel, total, gaps filled in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 36 years on record.
The figure is down 7.2% on the previous year and down 13.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel, total, gaps filled in Republic of Korea peaked at 750,000 in 1991 and was at its lowest, 569,000, in 2020.
That places Republic of Korea 11th out of 173 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 36 years of available data.
Armed forces personnel, total, gaps filled in Republic of Korea, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 598,000 | — |
| 1986 | 610,250 | +2.0% |
| 1987 | 622,500 | +2.0% |
| 1988 | 634,750 | +2.0% |
| 1989 | 647,000 | +1.9% |
| 1990 | 650,000 | +0.5% |
| 1991 | 750,000 | +15.4% |
| 1992 | 750,000 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 750,000 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 750,000 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 641,000 | -14.5% |
| 1996 | 668,000 | +4.2% |
| 1997 | 676,500 | +1.3% |
| 1998 | 676,500 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 676,500 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 687,500 | +1.6% |
| 2001 | 687,500 | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 690,500 | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 690,500 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 696,000 | +0.8% |
| 2005 | 693,000 | -0.4% |
| 2006 | 692,000 | -0.1% |
| 2007 | 692,000 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 692,000 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 659,500 | -4.7% |
| 2010 | 659,500 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 659,500 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 659,500 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 659,500 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 632,500 | -4.1% |
| 2015 | 634,500 | +0.3% |
| 2016 | 634,000 | -0.1% |
| 2017 | 634,000 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 608,000 | -4.1% |
| 2019 | 613,000 | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 569,000 | -7.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 622,500 | 598,000 | 647,000 | 5 |
| 1990s | 698,850 | 641,000 | 750,000 | 10 |
| 2000s | 688,050 | 659,500 | 696,000 | 10 |
| 2010s | 639,400 | 608,000 | 659,500 | 10 |
| 2020s | 569,000 | 569,000 | 569,000 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Republic of Korea
More public sector data for Republic of Korea
- Arms imports 1.01 billion SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 19.5 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0005 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate 362.84 % change on previous year (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), gaps filled 1.01 billion SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per capita 919.23 current USD per person (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per unit of GDP 0.0254 current USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), annual growth rate -0.4824 % change on previous year (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), gaps filled 47.57 billion current USD (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per square kilometre 2,234 SIPRI trend indicator values per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel, total, gaps filled in Republic of Korea?
- Armed forces personnel, total, gaps filled in Republic of Korea was 569,000 in 2020, according to Statizoid (derived).
- What is the highest armed forces personnel, total, gaps filled recorded in Republic of Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 750,000 in 1991.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel, total, gaps filled recorded in Republic of Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 569,000 in 2020.
- How does Republic of Korea rank for armed forces personnel, total, gaps filled?
- Republic of Korea ranks 11th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel, total, gaps filled rising or falling in Republic of Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Republic of Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Statizoid (derived), published as part of Armed forces personnel, total, gaps filled. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 36 observations, free to reuse under Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page.
How this figure is calculated
Armed forces personnel, total with 597 missing years estimated by linear interpolation between the nearest real observations. Only gaps of 4 years or fewer are filled, and never beyond the first or last actual measurement — these are filled holes, not forecasts.
Computed from
- Armed forces personnel, total The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies
Statizoid computes this series; the underlying measurements belong to the publishers named above. The arithmetic is applied to every country and year where both inputs report, and nothing is estimated unless the page says so.
About this data
Armed forces personnel, total with 597 missing years estimated by linear interpolation between the nearest real observations. Only gaps of 4 years or fewer are filled, and never beyond the first or last actual measurement — these are filled holes, not forecasts.