Place comparison

North Korea compared with South Korea: area, population and density

North Korea has about 1.2 times South Korea’s area, but South Korea has about 1.95 times its population, so South Korea is about 2.3 times as dense.

Place A Grouped by country or region Place B Grouped by country or region

Equal-area outline comparison

Outlines are centered and scaled by official land area; position does not show geographic location.

Area

Population

Population density

Area data date

Population data date

The guide below belongs to this pair: North Korea and South Korea. Change the selector above and the page follows, so the reading always matches the tool.

Direct answer

How different are North Korea and South Korea?

North Korea covers 120,538 km²; North Korea's area is 1.2 times South Korea's. Its reported population is 26,571,000; North Korea's population is about 51.3% of South Korea's. By average density, North Korea's population density is about 42.7% of South Korea's.

Area difference

North Korea's area is 1.2 times South Korea's 120,538 km² · 100,459.9 km²

Population difference

North Korea's population is about 51.3% of South Korea's 26,571,000 · 51,805,547

Density difference

North Korea's population density is about 42.7% of South Korea's 220.4 /km² · 515.7 /km²

Full data and sources for each place: North Korea area & population, South Korea area & population

Straight-line distance between geometric centres: about 416 km; time difference: none.

On a familiar scale

North Korea ≈ 3.33 × Taiwan 4,536 m² of land per resident
South Korea ≈ 2.78 × Taiwan 1,939 m² of land per resident

Reference scales come from Department of Household Registration, Ministry of the Interior: Land area, households and population density by township and district (year-end 2025) , as of 2025-12-31.

How to read it

The northern half of the peninsula has more land; the southern half has about twice the people.

Geography and shape

The two states divide the Korean Peninsula along the Military Demarcation Line and the Demilitarized Zone. North Korea borders China and Russia and is dominated by mountains in its north and east; South Korea is bounded by sea on three sides and holds more of the peninsula’s western and southern lowlands.

Population context

South Korea’s 51,805,547 people (2024 register-based census) are about 1.95 times North Korea’s UN-estimated 26,571,000 (2025). South Korea averages about 516 people per km², North Korea about 220.

Boundaries and definitions

The two sides do not use the same kind of figure. North Korea’s area is the United Nations surface-area figure and its population a UN estimate, because the country has not published a census since 2008; South Korea’s area is registered cadastral land and its population a register-based census. Treat the ratios as good approximations, not like-for-like measurements.

North Korea: United Nations surface area and 2025 medium-variant population estimate for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

South Korea: Register-based census population, including Korean and foreign residents; registered cadastral land area.

In-depth guide

How should North Korea and South Korea be understood in context?

The Korean Peninsula is split almost evenly by land, but not by people. North Korea has about 1.2 times South Korea’s area, while South Korea has nearly twice North Korea’s population — which is why the two average densities differ by more than two to one.

More land in the north, more people in the south

North Korea’s 120,538 km² against South Korea’s 100,460 km² is a gap of about 20%. The population gap runs the other way and is far larger: about 51.8 million in the South against an estimated 26.6 million in the North. South Korea averages about 516 people per km², North Korea about 220.

Seoul alone, with about 9.3 million people on 605 km², holds more than a third as many people as all of North Korea.

Why the North’s numbers are softer

North Korea has not published a census since 2008, so its population here is the United Nations’ 2025 estimate, and its area is the UN surface-area figure. South Korea’s figures come from a register-based census and registered cadastral land. The direction of every comparison on this page is solid; the decimals are approximate.

Questions people ask

About this geographic comparison

Which is bigger, North Korea or South Korea?

North Korea is bigger, with a land area about 1.2× that of South Korea (120,538 vs 100,459.9 km²).

How do North Korea and South Korea differ in area, population and density?

North Korea is 1.2× the size of South Korea — 120,538 km² vs 100,459.9 km². Population is 51.3% as high; average density is 42.7% as high. Each side’s scope and reference date are set out under “Boundaries and definitions” on this page.

Does North Korea or South Korea have more people?

South Korea, by a wide margin: about 51.8 million against North Korea’s UN-estimated 26.6 million, roughly 1.95 times as many.

Why are North Korea’s figures estimates?

North Korea’s last published census was in 2008. The population shown is the United Nations’ 2025 estimate, and the area is the UN surface-area figure rather than a cadastral survey.

Sources

Outline data:

Natural Earth · Public domain