Municipal water withdrawal in South Korea
South Korea: Municipal water withdrawal was 6.67 billion cubic meters in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
6.67 billion cubic meters
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
16th
of 183 countries
All-time high
8.61 billion cubic meters
in 2002
All-time low
2.27 billion cubic meters
in 1975
Years of data
49
1975–2023
Municipal water withdrawal in South Korea, 1975–2023
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in cubic meters.
Analysis
The most recent figure for municipal water withdrawal in South Korea is 6.67 billion cubic meters, measured in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 8.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, municipal water withdrawal in South Korea peaked at 8.61 billion cubic meters in 2002 and was at its lowest, 2.27 billion cubic meters, in 1975.
That places South Korea 16th out of 183 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 49 years of available data.
Municipal water withdrawal in South Korea, year by year
| Year | cubic meters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 2.27 billion cubic meters | — |
| 1976 | 2.42 billion cubic meters | +6.5% |
| 1977 | 2.56 billion cubic meters | +6.1% |
| 1978 | 2.71 billion cubic meters | +5.7% |
| 1979 | 2.86 billion cubic meters | +5.4% |
| 1980 | 3.00 billion cubic meters | +5.1% |
| 1981 | 3.15 billion cubic meters | +4.9% |
| 1982 | 3.30 billion cubic meters | +4.7% |
| 1983 | 3.44 billion cubic meters | +4.4% |
| 1984 | 3.59 billion cubic meters | +4.3% |
| 1985 | 3.74 billion cubic meters | +4.1% |
| 1986 | 3.88 billion cubic meters | +3.9% |
| 1987 | 4.03 billion cubic meters | +3.8% |
| 1988 | 4.18 billion cubic meters | +3.6% |
| 1989 | 4.32 billion cubic meters | +3.5% |
| 1990 | 4.47 billion cubic meters | +3.4% |
| 1991 | 4.81 billion cubic meters | +7.7% |
| 1992 | 5.16 billion cubic meters | +7.1% |
| 1993 | 5.50 billion cubic meters | +6.7% |
| 1994 | 5.84 billion cubic meters | +6.2% |
| 1995 | 6.18 billion cubic meters | +5.9% |
| 1996 | 6.53 billion cubic meters | +5.5% |
| 1997 | 6.87 billion cubic meters | +5.3% |
| 1998 | 6.53 billion cubic meters | -5.0% |
| 1999 | 6.18 billion cubic meters | -5.3% |
| 2000 | 5.84 billion cubic meters | -5.6% |
| 2001 | 7.23 billion cubic meters | +23.7% |
| 2002 | 8.61 billion cubic meters | +19.2% |
| 2003 | 8.05 billion cubic meters | -6.5% |
| 2004 | 7.49 billion cubic meters | -7.0% |
| 2005 | 6.92 billion cubic meters | -7.5% |
| 2006 | 6.97 billion cubic meters | +0.6% |
| 2007 | 7.01 billion cubic meters | +0.6% |
| 2008 | 7.05 billion cubic meters | +0.6% |
| 2009 | 7.09 billion cubic meters | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 7.13 billion cubic meters | +0.6% |
| 2011 | 7.17 billion cubic meters | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 7.22 billion cubic meters | +0.6% |
| 2013 | 7.26 billion cubic meters | +0.6% |
| 2014 | 7.30 billion cubic meters | +0.6% |
| 2015 | 6.55 billion cubic meters | -10.2% |
| 2016 | 6.67 billion cubic meters | +1.8% |
| 2017 | 6.67 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 6.67 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 6.67 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 6.67 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 6.67 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2022 | 6.67 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 6.67 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 6.67 billion cubic meters is above the median for high income countries, which is 699.00 million cubic meters, 9.5× the median. (61 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 6.67 billion cubic meters is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 1.04 billion cubic meters, 6.4× the median. (20 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 2.56 billion cubic meters | 2.27 billion cubic meters | 2.86 billion cubic meters | 5 |
| 1980s | 3.66 billion cubic meters | 3.00 billion cubic meters | 4.32 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 1990s | 5.81 billion cubic meters | 4.47 billion cubic meters | 6.87 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2000s | 7.23 billion cubic meters | 5.84 billion cubic meters | 8.61 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2010s | 6.93 billion cubic meters | 6.55 billion cubic meters | 7.30 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2020s | 6.67 billion cubic meters | 6.67 billion cubic meters | 6.67 billion cubic meters | 4 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More environment data for South Korea
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), annual -0.2791 % change on previous year (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per unit 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Total greenhouse gas emissions excluding LULUCF (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), annual growth rate -2.27 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per unit of GDP 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Agriculture (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) (Mt CO2e), annual -0.2415 % change on previous year (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) (Mt CO2e), per unit of 0 Mt CO2e per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Building (Energy) (Mt CO2e), per capita 0 Mt CO2e per person (2024)
- Methane (CH4) emissions from Fugitive Emissions (Energy) (Mt CO2e) 1.61 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is municipal water withdrawal in South Korea?
- Municipal water withdrawal in South Korea was 6.67 billion cubic meters in 2023, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest municipal water withdrawal recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 8.61 billion cubic meters in 2002.
- What is the lowest municipal water withdrawal recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.27 billion cubic meters in 1975.
- How does South Korea rank for municipal water withdrawal?
- South Korea ranks 16th out of 183 countries with data for 2023.
- Is municipal water withdrawal rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 8.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – AQUASTAT (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Municipal water withdrawal. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 49 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Water withdrawn each year for direct use by the population, usually measured as the total supplied by the public distribution network.