Korean Age – Calculator and Explanation of the System

Korean age is different than the age used in most countries. The whole concept of age is deeply embedded in Korean language and culture.

We’ll fill you in on what you need to know about age in Korea. We’ll also show you how to calculate your own Korean age. You can choose our easy formula, or our Korean age calculator.

Let’s get to it!

Do you want a downloadable guide for this topic? We have a free PDF resource for you here:

Korean Age Calculator

Enter your birth year below, and the Korean age calculator will show you your Korean age.

The Korean age calculator above will use the Korean age formula and automatically calculate your Korean age. If you want to understand Korean age better, or how Korean age is calculated, we’ll explain below.

What is Korean Age?

Korean age is a way that Koreans calculate their age. It is always one or two years more than your international age. Koreans consider a year in the womb as counting towards their age, so everyone is one year old at birth. Everyone gets one year added to their Korean age on New Year’s Day.

Here’s an easy way to think about it. Your Korean age will always be at least one year older than your international age. That’s because Korean age adds one year because of the time you spent in the womb before being born (approximately one year).

Your Korean age will change on New Year’s Day, not on your birthday. People in Korea still celebrate their birthday’s on the day that they were born. However, it doesn’t affect their Korean age. Their Korean age changes on January 1st.

For example, if you were born on April 1^st, then you would still celebrate your birthday on April 1^st. However, your Korean age wouldn’t change until January 1st. Korean age isn’t calculated based on your birthday.

If you’re curious about your Korean age, there is a Korean age calculator earlier and later in this post. We also recommend you try the formulas we provide before using the Korean age calculator. More on that in a bit.

Why is Korean Age Important?

Age in Korea is very important in Korean culture. Far more important than it is in Europe or the USA.

Often the first question that people ask is “How old are you?” People’s age is important not just for things like whether you are old enough to buy cigarettes and alcohol, but for a whole variety of social interactions in Korea.

People use different language when speaking to people of a different age. They expect people to act differently, with younger people expected to pour drinks, or older people expected to pay for things.

Even the way you refer to your friends is based on their age; if they are a year older than you, they might be your 누나 (nuna) or  언니 (eonni), if they are younger, they will be your 동생 (dongsaeng).

With all this importance put on age, answering the question “How old are you?” is very important. But the answer depends on the meaning of the question.

Why is Korean Age Different?

Korean age is different than international age (or Western age) because of two reasons. First, you are automatically one year old at birth. Second, you age another year because of the turn of the calendar year. Your date of birth doesn’t affect your Korean age.

To contrast, if you are a baby born in the USA, then on the day after you are born, you are considered to be one day old. The nine months that you spent inside your mommy’s tummy are not considered part of your age. Your age increases by one each time your date of birth passes.

In Korea, on the day of your birth, you are considered to be one year old; the time you spent in the womb counts as the first year of your life (despite it only being nine months). Because of this, your Korean age is always at least one year higher than your international age. Then the change of the year on January 1st automatically advances your Korean age by one. You can read more about Korean months here.

What’s my Korean age?

If you’re curious to know “what’s my Korean age”, there are three simple ways to get the answer. One of the easiest and simplest ways of knowing your age in Korean is to add 1 year to the current year then subtract your year of birth. This method will make you 1 year older than your Western age.

For example, if the current year is 2021 and the year you were born is 1992, you’ll add 1 year to the current year (2021 + 1) and subtract your year of birth. This is (2021 + 1) – 1992 = 30.

Another method of knowing your age in the Korean age system is by adding 1 year to your Western age if your birthday has passed upon calculation and add 2 years if your birthday hasn’t passed yet. And lastly use the Korean age calculator.

Pick whichever one you like the best among these. We recommend using the Korean age calculator last. Let’s take a look at the examples of each method below.

1. Use the “Korean Age +1 Formula”

(Current year – Year of Birth) + 1 = Korean Age

If you were born in 1995, and the year is 2019:

(2019 – 1995) + 1 = 25 years old (Korean age)

2. Use the “Korean Age Birthday Formula”

Birthday has passed this year: Your Age + 1 = Korean Age

Birthday has not passed this year: Your Age + 2 = Korean Age

If you are 25 and your birthday has passed:

25 + 1 = 26 years old (Korean age)

If you are 25 and your birthday has not passed this year:

25 + 2 = 27 years old (Korean age)

This means that your Korean age will be one or two years more than your international age.

3. Use the Korean Age Calculator

Using the Korean Age Calculator is super easy, just input your birth year. We recommend using the formulas above first, and then check your answer by using the Korean age calculator after.

If you want to get a solid understanding of Korean age, then you could try to calculate the Korean age of various people using the formulas, like celebrities or people you know. Then you can use the Korean age calculator to check if you’re correct.

Keep in mind that the Korean age calculator uses today’s date. If you want to calculate a Korean age on a different date, then use formulas 1 and 2.

Now that you know you how to calculate your Korean age, let’s look at some examples.

Korean Age Example

Let’s take a look at a Korean age example if your birthday is September 21st, 1997.

• International age:
  • On January 1st, 2021, your international age is 23.
  • On September 21st, 2021, your international age is 24.
  • On January 1st, 2022, your international age is 24.
• Korean age:
  • On January 1st, 2021, your Korean age is 25
  • On September 21st, 2021, your Korean age is 25
  • On January 1st, 2022, your Korean age is 26

Jeon Jung-kook Age

Let’s discover both Jung-kook age in Korean and his international age. He’s one of the members of the popular Kpop group BTS.

Jeon Jung-kook was born on September 1, 1997.

• International age:
  • On September 1, 2021, his international age is 24 years old.
  • On January 1, 2022, his international age is 24 years old.
  • On September 1, 2022, his international age is 25.
• Korean age:
  • On September 1, 2021, Jungkook’s age is 25 years old.
  • On January 1, 2022, Jungkook’s age is 26 years old.
  • On September 1, 2022, Jungkook’s age is 26 years old

How to Say Your Age in Korean

Knowing how to say your Korean age is really useful to know when learning how to speak Korean. It’s for sure to come up in conversation. You can say your Korean age by using this sentence. The Korean age calculator and formulas above will help you get the correct Korean age to use.

Example:

저는 스무 살입니다 (jeoneun seumu sarimnida).

This means “I am 20 years old“. You can substitute your age by using the chart below. If you don’t know how Korean numbers work, then check out this resource.

Get “Korean Age” Free PDF Guide

How to Ask Someone’s Korean Age

You can also ask someone’s Korean age by using this question:

나이가 어떻게 되세요? (naiga eotteoke doeseyo?)

How old are you?

You may hear people ask you for your birthdate. That means you’ll tell them your birth year, birth month, and birthdate (in that order). For example:

생년월일이 어떻게 됩니까? (saengnyeonworiri eotteoke doemnikka?)

What’s your date of birth?

If you were born on Jan 15, 1995, you can say:

1995년 1월 15일 (천구백구십오 년 일 월 십오 일 | cheongubaekgusibo nyeon il wol sibo il)

This is a very common question if you go somewhere where you’ll need to be registered, such as at the dentist or doctor’s office. They use the year you were born plus your birth month and day to look you up in their systems.

Age in Korean

There are three words that can be used for age. If you are speaking to somebody who is a lot older than you, or if you are in a formal setting, then you should use the word 연세 (yeonse).

If you are speaking to somebody younger than you or of a similar age to you then you can use the words 나이 (nai) or 살 (sal).

살 (sal) translates as something closer to ‘years old’ rather than age. If you want to say ‘years old’ when talking about someone who is a lot older than you, then you should say 세 (se) instead of 살 (sal).

Rather ironically, in order to ask somebody their age in Korean, you have to guess how old they are in order to allow you to use the correct level of politeness.

There is a large chance of confusion when non-Koreans talk about age with Koreans. The way that most Koreans avoid confusion is to use the terms “Korean age” and “international age” when talking about age.

한국 나이 (Hanguk nai) – Korean Age

만 나이 (man nai) – international age

Example sentence:

저는 올해 스무 살이지만 만으로는 열아홉 살이에요.

(jeoneun olhae seumu sarijiman maneuroneun yeorahop sarieyo.)

I’m twenty in Korean age but nineteen in Western age.

These are some common Korean words that you’ll hear. You may notice them if you live in Korea and know how to read Hangeul.

Other Korean Age Terms

You may also hear these terms when people are talking about international age. They all mean the same as “만 나이 (man nai).”

국제 나이 (gukje nai) – international age

미국 나이 (miguk nai) – American age

외국 나이 (oeguk nai) – foreign age

How to Say “How Old Are You” in Korean

Formal “How Old Are You” in Korean

1. 연세가 어떻게 되십니까? (yeonsega eotteoke doeshimnikka)

If you are in a formal situation such as a presentation or interview, then you can use the above expression to ask how old somebody is.

Example:

A: 연세가 어떻게 되십니까? (yeonsega eotteoke doesimnikka)

How old are you?

B: 마흔다섯 살입니다. (maheundaseot sarimnida)

I am 45 years old.

Standard “How Old Are You” in Korean

1. 연세가 어떻게 되세요? (yeonsega eotteoke doeseyo)

2. 나이가 어떻게 되세요? (naiga eotteoke doeseyo)

3. 몇 살이에요? (myeot sarieyo)

When speaking to somebody older than you, then you should ask 연세가 어떻게 되세요 (yeonsega eotteoke doeseyo)? If you are speaking to somebody of a similar age then either of the other two expressions is acceptable, although 몇 살이에요 (myeot sarieyo)? sounds a bit less formal than 나이가 어떻게 되세요 (naiga eotteoke doeseyo)?

Example:

A: 나이가 어떻게 되세요? (naiga eotteoke doeseyo)

How old are you?

B: 스무 살이에요. (seumu sarieyo)

I’m 20 years old.

Informal “How Old Are You” in Korean

1. 몇 살이야? (myeot sariya)

If you are asking somebody their age then you are probably not close enough to them to get away with using informal language. It is best to play it safe and say 몇 살이에요 (myeot sarieyo)? instead of 몇 살이야 (myeot sariya)?

When is the international age used in Korea?

As a general rule, the Korean age is used for social interactions with people, whereas international age is used for more official things. For example, the age limits written on alcohol, cigarettes, movie posters, and so on are based on international age.

Legal age in Korea

The legal age for most things in Korea is 19. This means an international age of 18.

Drinking age in Korea

The legal drinking age in Korea is 20 years old in Korean counting. This means an international age of 19 years old can legally drink in Korea.

Military conscription age in Korea?

One of the duties of male Koreans is to render service in the military for about 2 years. According to Korean law, all men at the age of 19 years old to 28  years old must perform military service.

When Do Koreans Celebrate their Birthdays?

Everybody in Korea shares the same birthday: January 1^st. However, that’s not when they celebrate their actual birthday.

Everybody has their own birthday, complete with cake and candles. Koreans celebrate their birthday on the day they were born. But on your birthday in Korea, you are not considered to be one year older than the day before.

Instead, Koreans all age on the same day. January 1^st. No matter when your birthday is, if you were 40 years old on December 31^st, then on January 1^st, you will be 41. Korean age works as if everybody was born on January 1^st.

Wow, we are the same age!

As age determines a complete host of social interactions in Korea, being of the same age as somebody can make everybody feel more comfortable. If somebody that you have just met finds out that you are the same age as them, they will often be excited. This is because if you and your friend are the same age in Korea, neither person will have any of the social obligations that come from being a different age from each other.

Being the same age as another person has a special word in Korean: 동갑 (donggap). You will often hear the expression 우리는 동갑이다 (urineun donggabida) which means “we are the same age”. As the Korean age system is based on year of birth, rather than your birthday, you will always be the same age as this new friend. Even if your birthday is the very next day!

Now that you know the difference between Korean age and international age, as well as how to calculate your Korean age. But don’t be upset that you have suddenly become two years older. After all, age is just a number!

If you liked this article and want to learn Korean, head over here for more great resources:

1. How-to guide for learning the language: https://www.90daykorean.com/learn-korean/
2. Korean Phrase List: https://www.90daykorean.com/korean-phrases/
3. Korean Grammar Guide: https://www.90daykorean.com/korean-grammar/
4. Korean Sentence Structure: https://www.90daykorean.com/korean-sentence-structure/