- South Korea has roughly 50 million internet users (50,000,000 people) — about 96.2% of the population and rank #23 globally.
- The apps people open most: KakaoTalk, LINE WORKS, KakaoTalk, Instagram. They cover Messaging, Social, Video, Shopping, Payments, Mobility, Food, News, Music, Travel, Tools, Classifieds, Banking, Cloud storage, Security, AI assistants, Learning, Health, Parcels, Maps, Gaming, Reading, Public services and more.
- The one to know first: KakaoTalk — Korea’s near-universal messenger.
South Korea in numbers
2025–2026- Internet users
- 50 million50,000,000 · #23
- Penetration
- 96.2%#18
- Population
- 52 million52,000,000 · #29
- GDP
- $1.88T#12
- GDP growth
- +2.0%#148
- GDP per person
- $36,065#47
- Land area
- 100.2k km²#108
- Capital
- Seoul
- Region
- Asia
- Official languages
- Korean (official)
How South Korea goes online
Korea is fast, near-universally connected, and home to two ecosystems that do almost everything: Kakao and Naver. Coupang made next-day delivery the baseline, and Baemin made food delivery a national habit.
Around 96.2%. With a population of about 52 million and 50 million online, roughly 2 million people are still offline — mostly because of rural coverage, device cost and age.
All 138 apps below are grouped by category.
What people actually use
138 Most-used appsWebsites people in South Korea actually use
27The 27 sites locals open most often — news, shopping, search, banking and government services. Every link goes to the official site.
Nearby and similar markets
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Frequently asked questions
6 Q&AHow many people in South Korea are online?
About 50 million (50,000,000 people). That works out to roughly 96.2% of the population, which puts South Korea at #23 in the world for total internet users. Figures come from DataReportal’s Digital 2026, which draws on ITU and national statistics.
Which apps do people in South Korea use most?
Mostly KakaoTalk, LINE WORKS, KakaoTalk, Instagram — they cover Messaging, Social, Video, Shopping, Payments, Mobility, Food, News, Music, Travel, Tools, Classifieds, Banking, Cloud storage, Security, AI assistants, Learning, Health, Parcels, Maps, Gaming, Reading, Public services. The full list, grouped by category, is further down this page.
What is the leading Messaging app in South Korea?
KakaoTalk, LINE WORKS, KakaoTalk dominate this space. The best-known is KakaoTalk — Korea’s near-universal messenger.
How high is internet penetration in South Korea?
Around 96.2%. With a population of about 52 million and 50 million online, roughly 2 million people are still offline — mostly because of rural coverage, device cost and age.
Where do these app facts come from?
Usage figures come from DataReportal’s Digital 2026 (Kepios, based on ITU and national statistics); app details come from each product’s official site. Updated 2026-11-12.
Which websites are most popular in South Korea?
The everyday ones are Naver, Daum, Coupang, plus the other 27 sites listed above. They cover news, shopping, search, banking and official paperwork, and every link points to the official site.
Sources
Updated 2026-11-12- DataReportal — Digital 2026
- ITU — Statistics
- Official product sites
World Sites & Apps. “South Korea: internet and everyday apps”. 2026. https://abcvv.com/c/kr-en.html