Italy vs South Korea: People using at least a basic drinking water source

Italy
59.29 million people
in 2024
South Korea
51.72 million people
in 2024
Italy rank
22nd
South Korea rank
24th

People using at least a basic drinking water source over time

  • Italy
  • South Korea
020.0M40.0M60.0M200020122024

How they compare

Italy currently reports 59.29 million people against 51.72 million people in South Korea, a difference of 7.58 million people.

That makes Italy's figure about 1.1 times South Korea's.

Across all 23 years both countries report, Italy has been ahead every year.

Italy ranks 22nd and South Korea ranks 24th of 231 countries.

Italy has averaged higher in every one of the 3 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade Italy South Korea Difference Ahead
2000s 58.47 million people 47.37 million people 11.11 million people Italy
2010s 60.36 million people 50.21 million people 10.14 million people Italy
2020s 59.57 million people 51.74 million people 7.83 million people Italy

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher people using at least a basic drinking water source, Italy or South Korea?
Italy, at 59.29 million people against 51.72 million people in South Korea as of 2024.
What is the difference in people using at least a basic drinking water source between Italy and South Korea?
7.58 million people, with Italy ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Italy and South Korea?
23 years are reported by both, from 2002 to 2024.
How do Italy and South Korea rank globally for people using at least a basic drinking water source?
Italy ranks 22nd and South Korea ranks 24th of 231 countries.
Where does this data come from?
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as People using at least a basic drinking water source. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

About this data

Indicator
People using at least a basic drinking water source
Unit
people
Source
WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme for Water Supply, Sanitation and Hygiene (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
231 places, 5,586 data points, 2000–2024
Last refreshed

Number of people using an improved drinking water source, which is either available on premises, or collection time is no more than 30 minutes for a roundtrip.