Signs of Rebound in Marriage Intentions as More Singles Say Yes to Marriage
Creatrip Team
a month ago
A national survey of 2,050 adults aged 20–44 found growing willingness to marry among South Korea’s singles for the second year in a row. 60.8% of unmarried men and 47.6% of unmarried women said they plan to marry, rising by 2.3 and 3.0 percentage points respectively. Reasons deterring marriage include financial burden for men and difficulty finding a partner who meets expectations for women. Intentions to have children also rose slightly across all groups: 62.0% of unmarried men and 42.6% of unmarried women expressed willingness to have children. Expected number of children varied by sex and marital status, with married men expecting the most (1.69) and unmarried women the least (0.91). Economic concerns were the main reason for hesitating about childbirth, while unmarried women more often cited worries about children’s future happiness. Most respondents (86.1%) still saw marriage as important for forming a strong family, though many also said personal commitment can matter more than legal marriage and that marriage brings burdens as well as benefits. Key conditions for parenthood were a stable relationship, a responsible partner, and an environment that allows balancing work and childcare; financial readiness was also noted. Overall, attitudes toward marriage and childbearing show modest recovery but remain shaped by economic and social anxieties.
