As the number of single-person households continues to grow, Seoul’s Songpa District announced that it will introduce a pilot program on December 10 for 0.6-liter food waste disposal bags — the first local government in the country to offer bags specifically designed for one-person households. (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Dec. 9 (Korea Bizwire) — Single-person households have become the most common living arrangement in South Korea, accounting for roughly 36 percent of all households last year, according to government data released Tuesday.
The annual survey by the Ministry of Data and Statistics found that 8.05 million households consisted of a single person in 2024, making up 36.1 percent of the national total. Two-person households represented 29 percent, while three-person homes accounted for 18.8 percent. Only 16 percent of households had four or more members.
The share of one-person households increased by 0.6 percentage point from a year earlier, while two-person households also rose slightly. By contrast, the proportion of three-person households declined by 0.2 point, and larger households fell by 0.8 point, continuing a trend associated with aging demographics, delayed marriage and declining birthrates.
The age profile of people living alone is widening. About 19.8 percent of single-person households were occupied by people aged 70 and older, while 17.8 percent consisted of adults aged 29 or younger.
More than 60 percent of one-person households were employed, and roughly four in ten operated small businesses or worked in the public sector.
With the growing number of single person households, the number of meal kit products for single person households has increased dramatically. (Yonhap)
Financial conditions, however, remained unequal. The average annual income of individuals living alone was 34.23 million won ($23,288), up 6.2 percent from a year earlier but well below the national household average of 74.27 million won.
Social conditions also diverged. The survey found that 51.1 percent of people living alone were satisfied with their social relationships, compared with 55.5 percent among all households. Nearly 49 percent of single-person households reported feeling lonely often or sometimes, far higher than the 38.2 percent of all households that expressed similar feelings.
Lina Jang (linajang@koreabizwire.com)
