Soldiers' monthly wages growth rate South Korea 2013-2024

In 2024, the monthly wages for conscripted soldiers in South Korea rose by nearly 19 percent compared to the previous year. Wages have increased steadily over the past decade, with the sharpest increase recorded in 2018, when wages jumped by almost 88 percent. Conscript soldiers, with ranks ranging from private to sergeant, are paid between 640 thousand and 1.25 million South Korean won every month.
This is still far lower than what other modern militaries pay their enlisted soldiers. The U.S. military, for example, pays their privates or equivalents around 1,700 U.S. dollars (approximately 2 million won). South Korean conscripts are all male enlisted soldiers; higher ranks are career soldiers and women are only NCOs or officers.