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

Republic of Korea vs Japan: population pyramids in 2008

2008Swap

Republic of KoreaJapan

1%0.75%0.5%0.25%0%0.25%0.5%0.75%1%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 2008, the Republic of Korea has a population of 48.3 million and Japan 128.1 million; Japan is about 2.7 times the size of the Republic of Korea.

The share aged 65 and over is 10.1% in the Republic of Korea and 21.9% in Japan, 11.8 points higher in Japan. The median age is 36.1 years in the Republic of Korea and 44.4 years in Japan.

The total fertility rate is 1.19 in the Republic of Korea and 1.33 in Japan, both below the replacement level of about 2.1. Life expectancy at birth is 80.0 years in the Republic of Korea and 82.6 years in Japan.

By 2050, the population of the Republic of Korea is projected to shrink by 6.2% and that of Japan to shrink by 18.0% compared with 2008.

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

Key figures (2008)

Republic of KoreaJapan
Population48.3 million128.1 million
Aged 0–1417.8%13.6%
Aged 15–6472.1%64.5%
Aged 65+10.1%21.9%
Median age36.1 yrs44.4 yrs
Old-age dependency14.034.0
Total fertility rate1.191.33
Life expectancy80.0 yrs82.6 yrs
Population growth+0.38%+0.04%
Net migration (per year)-19,630+142,605
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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