International tourism, receipts (% of total exports) in South Korea
South Korea: International tourism, receipts (% of total exports) was 1.9% in 2020. ▼ Falling
International tourism, receipts in South Korea, 1995–2020
Source: Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism. Measured in % of total exports.
Analysis
South Korea recorded 1.9% for international tourism, receipts in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 26 years on record.
That represents a change of down 50.1% on the previous year and down 26.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, international tourism, receipts in South Korea peaked at 5.3% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 1.9%, in 2020.
South Korea ranks 142nd of 183 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 26 years of available data.
International tourism, receipts (% of total exports) in South Korea, year by year
| Year | % of total exports | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 4.6% | — |
| 1996 | 4.3% | -8.2% |
| 1997 | 3.9% | -7.5% |
| 1998 | 5.3% | +35.6% |
| 1999 | 5.1% | -4.8% |
| 2000 | 4.2% | -16.9% |
| 2001 | 4.5% | +5.9% |
| 2002 | 4.0% | -11.2% |
| 2003 | 3.0% | -23.5% |
| 2004 | 2.7% | -10.1% |
| 2005 | 2.5% | -9.6% |
| 2006 | 2.2% | -11.4% |
| 2007 | 2.0% | -6.8% |
| 2008 | 2.6% | +25.9% |
| 2009 | 3.0% | +18.5% |
| 2010 | 2.6% | -13.8% |
| 2011 | 2.6% | -2.3% |
| 2012 | 2.7% | +3.7% |
| 2013 | 2.7% | +1.7% |
| 2014 | 3.1% | +14.5% |
| 2015 | 2.9% | -5.4% |
| 2016 | 3.4% | +18.1% |
| 2017 | 2.6% | -25.7% |
| 2018 | 3.2% | +23.5% |
| 2019 | 3.9% | +21.8% |
| 2020 | 1.9% | -50.1% |
South Korea compared with similar countries
- South Korea's 1.9% is below the median for high income countries, which is 4.2%, 46% of the median. (65 countries reporting)
- South Korea's 1.9% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 5.4%, 36% of the median. (31 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 4.6% | 3.9% | 5.3% | 5 |
| 2000s | 3.1% | 2.0% | 4.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.0% | 2.6% | 3.9% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.9% | 1.9% | 1.9% | 1 |
Countries ranked near South Korea
More private sector data for South Korea
- Merchandise trade 71.6% (2025)
- Food imports 6.5% (2025)
- Manufactures imports 62.1% (2025)
- Merchandise imports 631.89 billion current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service imports 183.44 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 1.7% (2025)
- Manufactures exports 88.0% (2025)
- Merchandise exports 709.33 billion current US$ (2025)
- Commercial service exports 149.31 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 13,724 current US$ per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is international tourism, receipts in South Korea?
- International tourism, receipts in South Korea was 1.9% in 2020, according to Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism.
- What is the highest international tourism, receipts recorded in South Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 5.3% in 1998.
- What is the lowest international tourism, receipts recorded in South Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.9% in 2020.
- How does South Korea rank for international tourism, receipts?
- South Korea ranks 142nd out of 183 countries with data for 2020.
- Is international tourism, receipts rising or falling in South Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is down 26.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Korea data come from?
- The figures come from Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism, published as part of International tourism, receipts (% of total exports). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
International tourism receipts are expenditures by international inbound visitors, including payments to national carriers for international transport. These receipts include any other prepayment made for goods or services received in the destination country. They also may include receipts from same-day visitors, except when these are important enough to justify separate classification. For some countries they do not include receipts for passenger transport items. Their share in exports is calculated as a ratio to exports of goods and services, which comprise all transactions between residents of a country and the rest of the world involving a change of ownership from residents to nonresidents of general merchandise, goods sent for processing and repairs, nonmonetary gold, and services.