World Population PyramidsPopulation pyramids and indicators by country and year日本語

Japan vs Republic of Korea: population pyramids in 1997

1997Swap

JapanRepublic of Korea

1.5%1%0.5%0%0.5%1%1.5%0102030405060708090100MaleFemale

Each bar is the share of the total population at that single year of age (men left, women right), so countries of different sizes can be compared.

Japan and Republic of Korea compared

In 1997, Japan has a population of 126.1 million and the Republic of Korea 45.8 million; Japan is about 2.8 times the size of the Republic of Korea.

The share aged 65 and over is 15.5% in Japan and 6.1% in the Republic of Korea, 9.4 points higher in Japan. The median age is 40.6 years in Japan and 30.0 years in the Republic of Korea.

The total fertility rate is 1.38 in Japan and 1.56 in the Republic of Korea, both below the replacement level of about 2.1. Life expectancy at birth is 80.6 years in Japan and 74.5 years in the Republic of Korea.

By 2050, the population of Japan is projected to shrink by 16.7% and that of the Republic of Korea to shrink by 1.1% compared with 1997.

GDP per person is $36K in Japan (2025) and $36K in the Republic of Korea (2025).

Key figures (1997)

JapanRepublic of Korea
Population126.1 million45.8 million
Aged 0–1415.2%22.3%
Aged 15–6469.3%71.7%
Aged 65+15.5%6.1%
Median age40.6 yrs30.0 yrs
Old-age dependency22.38.5
Total fertility rate1.381.56
Life expectancy80.6 yrs74.5 yrs
Population growth+0.23%+0.65%
Net migration (per year)+43,366-109,130
GDP$4.44T (2025)$1.87T (2025)
GDP per person$36K (2025)$36K (2025)
Unemployment2.5% (2025)2.7% (2025)

Economic figures are the latest year published for each country.

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