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Republic of Korea vs Japan: population pyramids in 1965

1965Swap

Republic of KoreaJapan

2%1.5%1%0.5%0%0.5%1%1.5%2%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.

Republic of Korea and Japan compared

In 1965, the Republic of Korea has a population of 29 million and Japan 100.4 million; Japan is about 3.5 times the size of the Republic of Korea.

The share aged 65 and over is 3.3% in the Republic of Korea and 6.3% in Japan, 3.0 points higher in Japan. The median age is 18.6 years in the Republic of Korea and 27.4 years in Japan.

The total fertility rate is 4.89 in the Republic of Korea and 2.09 in Japan, so only Japan is below the replacement level of about 2.1. Life expectancy at birth is 55.8 years in the Republic of Korea and 70.3 years in Japan.

By 2050, the population of the Republic of Korea is projected to grow by 56.0% and that of Japan to grow by 4.7% compared with 1965.

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

Key figures (1965)

Republic of KoreaJapan
Population29 million100.4 million
Aged 0–1443.3%25.4%
Aged 15–6453.5%68.3%
Aged 65+3.3%6.3%
Median age18.6 yrs27.4 yrs
Old-age dependency6.19.2
Total fertility rate4.892.09
Life expectancy55.8 yrs70.3 yrs
Population growth+1.73%+1.08%
Net migration (per year)-146,386-50,667
GDP$1.87T (2025)$4.44T (2025)
GDP per person$36K (2025)$36K (2025)
Unemployment2.7% (2025)2.5% (2025)

Economic figures are the latest year published for each country.

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