Two-person households to top 30 percent in Korea for first time

Two-person households are projected to account for more than 30 percent of South Korean households for the first time next year, exceeding the combined share of three- and four-person households, government projections showed Tuesday.

South Korea is expected to have 22.81 million households in 2027, up 0.9 percent from this year, according to household projections from the Ministry of Data and Statistics. The number of households will continue to grow despite population decline, driven by increases in one- and two-person households.

Two-person households are projected to increase 2.1 percent to 6.89 million, accounting for 30.2 percent of the total, up from 29.9 percent this year.

Among two-person households, 44.3 percent are expected to be headed by someone aged 65 or older, up 1.3 percentage points from this year.

One-person households will remain the largest category, increasing 2.3 percent to 8.55 million. Their share will rise to 37.5 percent.

Meanwhile, the number of three-person households is projected to fall 0.4 percent to 4.12 million, while four-person households will decline 2.9 percent to 2.61 million.

Their shares will drop to 18.1 percent and 11.4 percent, respectively, for a combined 29.5 percent — below the share of two-person households.

Households with five or more members will total 634,000, accounting for 2.8 percent of the total.

Over the longer term, the number of one-person households is projected to peak in 2043, followed by two-person households in 2047. Their shares of all households, however, will continue to rise through 2052.

By 2052, one- and two-person households are expected to account for 41.3 percent and 35.5 percent of the total, respectively. The shares of three- and four-person households will fall to 15.2 percent and 6.7 percent.