Through last year, the number of marriages in Korea increased for three straight years. This is the first time in 18 years since 2007 that the number of marriages has risen for three consecutive years.
According to the "2025 marriage and divorce statistics" that the Ministry of Data and Statistics (MODS) released on the 19th, the number of marriages last year was 240,000, up 8.1% (18,000) from a year earlier.
Until relatively recently, the number of marriages had been on a decline. From 2012 to 2022, it fell for 11 straight years. After that, the number of marriages rebounded, showing increases of ▲1% in 2023 ▲14.8% in 2024 ▲8.1% in 2025. It is the first three-year increase since 2004 to 2007. Last year's increase (8.1%) was the sixth largest since statistics began and, since same-surname-same-clan marriages were allowed in 1997, the second largest after 2024.
Park Hyun-jung, Director of the Population Trends Division at the data agency, said, "The increase in the population in the early 30s, the base effect from marriages delayed by COVID-19, and a positive shift in perceptions about marriage among unmarried men and women of marriageable age had an impact."
◇ "older woman–younger man" marriages top 20% for first time
The average age at first marriage was 33.9 for men and 31.6 for women. Women were up 0.1 year from a year earlier, while men were similar. Ten years ago, the average age gap at first marriage was 3.2 years (men 30.9, women 27.7), but it has now narrowed to 2.2 years.
There is also the impact of more "older woman–younger man" couples (where the woman is older than the man). Among first-time married couples last year, older-woman couples accounted for 20.2%. This share is "the highest on record." Director Park said, "As the patriarchal pattern of society in which men mainly handled the economic sphere has been breaking down significantly in recent years, this phenomenon seems to have emerged." Meanwhile, among first-time married couples, older-man couples accounted for 63%, and same-age couples accounted for 16.7%.
◇ Foreign-national marriages declined, but "Korea-Japan couples" remain steady
Last year, marriages between Koreans and foreign nationals totaled 21,000, down 0.3% from a year earlier. The share of marriages with foreign nationals in all marriages was 8.6%, down 0.7 percentage point (p) from the previous year. By nationality, foreign wives were most commonly from Vietnam, China, and Thailand, in that order, while foreign husbands were most commonly from the United States, China, and Vietnam.
Compared with a year earlier, the number of marriages fell across various nationalities, but "Korea-Japan couples" are on the rise. Marriages between a Korean man and a Japanese woman numbered 1,483, up 26.1% from the previous year. Marriages between a Korean woman and a Japanese man also rose 29.3% to 190. In contrast, marriages between Vietnamese or Thai women and Korean men, and between American or Chinese men and Korean women, decreased.
Meanwhile, the number of divorces was 88,000, down 3.3% (3,000) from a year earlier. Those who divorced after 30 years of marriage accounted for the largest share at 17.7%, followed by ▲5–9 years (17.3%) ▲4 years or less (16.3%). This contrasts with 10 years ago, when divorces were more common the shorter the duration of marriage.