Measure
Snapshot
South Korea
Ranked 7 of 27 for comprehensive power, with an overall score of 31.0 out of 100.
Gained 1.5 points (+5% change) in overall score in 2024.
Measure
Analysis
South Korea is a middle power in Asia.
Its overall score increased by 1.5 points in 2024, ranking it 7th and nearly equalling Russia.
South Korea’s strongest measure continues to be defence networks, where it places 4th, the result of its extensive defence cooperation with treaty ally the United States.
South Korea ranks 5th in four measures — economic capability, military capability, economic relationships, and diplomatic influence — reflecting its role as one of the largest and most prosperous countries in Asia.
South Korea exerts more influence in the region than expected given its available resources, as indicated by the country’s positive power gap score. A net overachiever in Asia, South Korea’s positive power gap improved in 2024.
Read more analysis in the Key Findings report. Explore further results in the Scores section.
Annual changes
Bilateral Influence
Bilateral trade, current dollars (2022)
Countries that influence South Korea
Globally, which countries does South Korea do most of its trade with?
Countries influenced by South Korea
Which countries in the region rely most on trade with South Korea?
Scores
Comprehensive power
A country’s weighted average across eight measures of power
7th
31.0
Rank
Change
Trend
Score