한국어

Korea Minimum Wage by Year

Every rate Korea has set, with the daily and monthly figures each one comes to.

Minimum wage, year by year 💰

Daily figures assume 8 hours. Monthly figures use 209 hours: 40 a week plus paid weekly rest.
YearPer hourPer day (8h)Per month (209h)Change
202610,320 won82,560 won2,156,880 won2.9% (+290)
202510,030 won80,240 won2,096,270 won1.7% (+170)
20249,860 won78,880 won2,060,740 won2.5% (+240)
20239,620 won76,960 won2,010,580 won5.0% (+460)
20229,160 won73,280 won1,914,440 won5.05% (+440)
20218,720 won69,760 won1,822,480 won1.5% (+130)
20208,590 won68,720 won1,795,310 won2.87% (+240)
20198,350 won66,800 won1,745,150 won10.9% (+820)
20187,530 won60,240 won1,573,770 won16.4% (+1,060)
20176,470 won51,760 won1,352,230 won7.3% (+440)
20166,030 won48,240 won1,260,270 won8.1% (+450)
20155,580 won44,640 won1,166,220 won7.1% (+370)
20145,210 won41,680 won1,088,890 won-
Source: Minimum Wage Commission rate table

How fast it has moved 📈

Since 2014 the rate has grown 2.0 times over, but the pace swings a long way from one year to the next.
YearChange
Biggest rise201816.4%
Smallest rise20211.5%
In force now20262.9%
To check a monthly offer, divide it by 209 - the legal divisor for a 40-hour week, paid rest day included - and compare with the hourly rate above. Dividing by the hours you actually work hides a shortfall.

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Learn more 📚

Does it apply to me?

An employer cannot set worse conditions because of where you are from. That is a separate rule in the Labor Standards Act.
Question people askThe answer
Does it depend on my nationality?No. The Act covers every business that employs workers, and nationality is not in it
Does it depend on my visa?No. E-9, D-2, F-6 and everyone else share the same floor
Does part-time or casual work count?Yes, and so does a workplace with a single employee
Is anyone left out?Three groups: a business staffed only by live-in relatives, domestic workers, and seafarers

One country, one rate

Living costs differ across Korea, but the legal floor does not.
KoreaWhat visitors often expect
Who sets itOne national rate, published by the Minister of Employment and LaborA state, prefecture or city rate
Seoul vs a small townIdenticalHigher in the capital
By industryIdenticalSeparate floors for some trades

Where the 209 hours comes from

  1. 1
    Start with a 40-hour week40 hours × 4.345 weeks ≈ 174 hours4.345 is the average number of weeks in a month.
  2. 2
    Add the paid weekly rest day8 hours × 4.345 weeks ≈ 35 hoursWork 15 hours a week or more and Korea pays for one rest day on top of the hours worked.
  3. 3
    That gives the monthly divisor174 + 35 = 209 hoursEmployers use the same 209 to turn a monthly salary back into an hourly rate.

Probation: when a lower rate is legal

All three have to be true at once. If one fails, the full minimum wage applies. Even then the cut is capped at 10 percent, so you are owed at least 90 percent of the hourly rate.
ConditionWhat it means
A contract of a year or moreOn a shorter contract the full rate applies from day one
Within the first three monthsFrom the fourth month the full rate comes back
Not simple manual workJobs on the ministry's simple-labor list are excluded entirely

FAQ ❓

Yes. The Minimum Wage Act applies to every business that employs workers, and nationality and visa status appear nowhere in it. The Labor Standards Act separately bars an employer from setting worse conditions because of where you are from. Anyone telling you foreigners have a different rate is wrong.
No. Korea sets one rate for the whole country, so Seoul, Busan and a small town all share the same floor. Visitors from the United States or Japan often expect a regional scale and there is not one here.
Only when three things are true at once: your contract runs a year or more, you are within the first three months, and your job is not on the ministry's list of simple manual work. Miss any one of them and the full minimum wage applies from day one. Delivery, cleaning and shelf-stacking roles are the ones most often on that list.
It is the hourly rate times 209 hours. That figure is 40 hours a week converted to a month, about 174 hours, plus roughly 35 hours of paid weekly rest. Employers use the same 209 when they convert a monthly salary back to an hourly rate.
Partly. Regular monthly base pay and fixed allowances count in full. Overtime, night and holiday premiums never count. Bonuses and welfare payments such as a meal allowance count only up to a share that has been rising each year.
The Minimum Wage Commission deliberates and the Minister of Employment and Labor publishes the figure by August 5 each year. It then takes effect the following January 1, which is why the news and the payslip are six months apart.

Sources 🌐