What is the average BMI in South Korea?

24.5 for men and 23.2 for women, with standard deviations of 4.1 and 4.2. Averaged across the sexes that is 23.9, against a global figure of 24.6.

What share of adults in South Korea are overweight or obese?

Our estimate from the mean and SD: 45% of men have a BMI of 25 or more, and 9% are at 30 or more. For women it is 33% and 5%. These assume a normal curve, so the true obesity shares are likely a few points higher.

Is a BMI of 25 high in South Korea?

A BMI of 25 is the WHO line between healthy weight and overweight. In South Korea it is higher than about 55% of men and 67% of women. For men here that is roughly the median.

How does South Korea compare with Côte d'Ivoire?

Men in Côte d'Ivoire average 23.5 against 24.5 in South Korea; women 24.2 against 23.2. Côte d'Ivoire ranks 143rd, South Korea 144th.

Average BMI in South Korea

Men in South Korea have an average BMI of 24.5, women 23.2. Both means fall in the WHO healthy weight band for men and healthy weight for women. That puts South Korea 144th of 186 countries in our data, ranked from highest BMI to lowest.

Key numbers

Men

24.5

Healthy weight

Women

23.2

Healthy weight

SD, men / women

4.1 / 4.2

vs global mean

0.0

women -1.6

Rank

144 of 186

1 = highest BMI

Est. obese

9% / 5%

men / women, BMI 30+

Estimated share in each WHO category

Estimated from mean and SD with a normal curve, not surveyed shares
Category	BMI	Men	Women
Underweight	under 18.5	7%	13%
Healthy weight	18.5 to 25	48%	53%
Overweight	25 to 30	36%	28%
Obese	30 and over	9%	5%

Columns may not sum to 100 because of rounding. Real BMI distributions have a longer right tail than a normal curve, so the obese share here is probably a few points low.

South Korea among its neighbours

Ranking neighbours (three above and below) plus every Asia country in our data
#	Country	Men	Women	Both	Region
5	Kuwait	29.2	30.7	29.9	Asia
9	Qatar	28.9	30.4	29.6	Asia
10	Jordan	28.5	30.1	29.3	Asia
12	Palestine	28.3	30.0	29.1	Asia
14	Iraq	28.0	29.9	28.9	Asia
15	United Arab Emirates	28.2	29.6	28.9	Asia
16	Saudi Arabia	28.1	29.5	28.8	Asia
18	Syria	27.6	29.5	28.6	Asia
29	Lebanon	28.1	27.6	27.9	Asia
31	Georgia	27.7	27.9	27.8	Asia
39	Israel	27.8	27.1	27.5	Asia
44	Brunei	27.3	27.3	27.3	Asia
50	Azerbaijan	26.2	28.2	27.2	Asia
54	Uzbekistan	26.5	27.7	27.1	Asia
71	Kyrgyzstan	26.1	27.4	26.8	Asia
74	Turkmenistan	26.7	26.8	26.8	Asia
83	Kazakhstan	26.5	26.7	26.6	Asia
87	Oman	26.5	26.5	26.5	Asia
89	Mongolia	26.1	26.8	26.5	Asia
91	Armenia	25.7	27.2	26.4	Asia
94	Iran	25.4	27.3	26.4	Asia
99	Tajikistan	26.0	26.5	26.3	Asia
105	Malaysia	25.4	26.3	25.9	Asia
110	Maldives	24.8	26.6	25.7	Asia
123	Bahrain	24.9	24.8	24.9	Asia
127	Thailand	24.0	25.1	24.6	Asia
129	Taiwan	25.1	23.8	24.5	Asia
132	Hong Kong	24.6	23.9	24.3	Asia
133	North Korea	24.4	24.1	24.3	Asia
138	Bhutan	23.6	24.6	24.1	Asia
139	Pakistan	23.4	24.8	24.1	Asia
141	China	24.3	23.6	24.0	Asia
142	Yemen	23.7	24.2	23.9	Asia
143	Côte d'Ivoire	23.5	24.2	23.9	Africa
144	South Korea	24.5	23.2	23.9	Asia
145	Zimbabwe	22.3	25.4	23.9	Africa
146	Singapore	24.4	23.1	23.8	Asia
147	Benin	22.7	24.6	23.6	Africa
150	Afghanistan	22.7	24.2	23.4	Asia
156	Indonesia	22.6	23.9	23.3	Asia
157	Philippines	22.9	23.6	23.3	Asia
159	Sri Lanka	22.6	23.8	23.2	Asia
162	Laos	22.8	23.2	23.0	Asia
167	Japan	23.7	21.8	22.8	Asia
168	Myanmar	22.3	23.2	22.8	Asia
171	Nepal	22.6	22.5	22.6	Asia
173	Cambodia	22.2	22.4	22.3	Asia
179	Vietnam	22.0	21.9	21.9	Asia
180	India	21.8	22.0	21.9	Asia
181	Bangladesh	21.4	22.1	21.8	Asia
183	Timor-Leste	21.4	21.4	21.4	Asia

What a given BMI means in South Korea

Share of adults with a lower BMI than each value, estimated from mean and SD
BMI	WHO band	Lower, men	Lower, women
20.0	Healthy weight	14%	22%
22.5	Healthy weight	31%	43%
25.0	Overweight	55%	67%
27.5	Overweight	77%	85%
30.0	Obese	91%	95%
32.5	Obese	97%	99%
35.0	Obese	99%	>99%

Read it as: a man with BMI 30 in South Korea has a higher BMI than 91% of men. Values under 1% or over 99% are shown as <1 and >99.

In plain language

The standard deviation for men in South Korea is 4.1. About two thirds of men have a BMI between 20.4 and 28.6; for women the middle two thirds run from 19.0 to 27.4. Compared with the global mean, men here are 0.0 points higher and women 1.6 points lower.

BMI does not distinguish muscle from fat, and the WHO bands were set on European populations. For South and East Asian populations the same BMI carries more health risk, which is why several countries there use 23 and 27.5 as their own cut-offs.

Questions

What is the average BMI in South Korea?: 24.5 for men and 23.2 for women, with standard deviations of 4.1 and 4.2. Averaged across the sexes that is 23.9, against a global figure of 24.6.
What share of adults in South Korea are overweight or obese?: Our estimate from the mean and SD: 45% of men have a BMI of 25 or more, and 9% are at 30 or more. For women it is 33% and 5%. These assume a normal curve, so the true obesity shares are likely a few points higher.
Is a BMI of 25 high in South Korea?: A BMI of 25 is the WHO line between healthy weight and overweight. In South Korea it is higher than about 55% of men and 67% of women. For men here that is roughly the median.
How does South Korea compare with Côte d'Ivoire?: Men in Côte d'Ivoire average 23.5 against 24.5 in South Korea; women 24.2 against 23.2. Côte d'Ivoire ranks 143rd, South Korea 144th.

Source: NCD Risk Factor Collaboration, Lancet 2017, age-standardised mean BMI for 2016. Percentiles on this page are our estimate from a normal distribution with the stated mean and SD.

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🇰🇷Average BMI in South Korea