List of presidents of South Korea by age

See also: President of South Korea

This is a list of presidents of South Korea by age.

Overview

Under the 1988 Constitution of the Sixth Republic of Korea, the president must be at least 40 years old at the time of taking office. The median age of presidents upon assuming office is 61 years. The youngest person to become president was Park Chung Hee, who assumed office in 1962 at the age of 44, after he seized power in the May 16 coup of 1961. The youngest president to assume office by election is Roh Tae-woo, who was elected in 1987 at the age of 55. The oldest person to assume the presidency was Kim Dae-jung, he assumed office in 1998 at the age of 74.

The youngest president at the end of his tenure is Chun Doo-hwan, he left office in 1988 at the age of 57. The president with the shortest lifespan was Park Chung Hee, he was assassinated in 1979 at the age of 61. All presidents have lived above the age of 60. 8 presidents were in their 60s when they assumed office, 2 were in their 70s, and 4 were below 60. 61 years is the mean, median and modal age of presidents at assumption of office, it is also the modal age upon leaving office, as 3 presidents were 61 when they left office. Only Chun Doo-hwan was below 60 when he left office. The oldest president at the end of his tenure was Rhee Syng-man at 85.

Yoon Suk Yeol retirement, now 61 days is currently the shortest, Chun Doo-hwan's retirement of 33 years is the longest in South Korea's history. At age 83, Lee Myung-bak is the oldest of the four living presidents. Yun Po-sun who died in 1990 aged 92 is the nation's longest-lived president. Three presidents (Yun, Chun and Rhee) lived into their 90s, 4 died in their 80s, and 2 in their 60s. Lee Jae-myung, the current president, is also the youngest living president at age 61. The youngest living former president is Yoon Suk Yeol, age 64.

List of presidents by age at assuming office

This is a list of presidents of South Korea by age at assuming office from the youngest to the oldest.

Name	Date of birth	Date of death	Date and age at assuming office
Park Chung Hee	14 November 1917	26 October 1979	24 March 1962(1962-03-24) (aged 44)
Chun Doo-hwan	18 January 1931	23 November 2021	1 September 1980(1980-09-01) (aged 49)
Roh Tae-woo	4 December 1932	26 October 2021	25 February 1988(1988-02-25) (aged 55)
Roh Moo-hyun	1 September 1946	23 May 2009	25 February 2003(2003-02-25) (aged 56)
Choi Kyu-hah	16 July 1919	22 October 2006	26 October 1979(1979-10-26) (aged 60)
Park Geun-hye	2 February 1952	(living)	25 February 2013(2013-02-25) (aged 61)
Lee Jae-myung	8 December 1963	(living)	4 June 2025(2025-06-04) (aged 61)
Yoon Suk Yeol	18 December 1960	(living)	10 May 2022(2022-05-10) (aged 61)
Yun Po-sun	26 August 1897	18 July 1990	13 August 1960(1960-08-13) (aged 62)
Moon Jae-in	24 January 1953	(living)	10 May 2017(2017-05-10) (aged 64)
Kim Young-sam	20 December 1927	22 November 2015	25 February 1993(1993-02-25) (aged 65)
Lee Myung-bak	19 December 1941	(living)	25 February 2008(2008-02-25) (aged 66)
Rhee Syng-man	26 March 1875	19 July 1965	24 July 1948(1948-07-24) (aged 73)
Kim Dae-jung	6 January 1924	18 August 2009	25 February 1998(1998-02-25) (aged 74)

List of presidents by longevity

This table shows presidents by their longevity (living presidents in gold).

Rank	President	Date of birth	Date of death	Longevity (Years, Days)	Longevity (Days)
1	Yun Po-sun	26 August 1897	18 July 1990	92 years, 326 days	33,928 days
2	Chun Doo-hwan	18 January 1931	23 November 2021	90 years, 309 days	33,182 days
3	Rhee Syng-man	26 March 1875	19 July 1965	90 years, 115 days	32,987 days
4	Roh Tae-woo	4 December 1932	26 October 2021	88 years, 326 days	32,468 days
5	Kim Young-sam	20 December 1927	22 November 2015	87 years, 337 days	32,114 days
6	Choi Kyu-hah	16 July 1919	22 October 2006	87 years, 98 days	31,875 days
7	Kim Dae-jung	6 January 1924	18 August 2009	85 years, 224 days	31,271 days
8	Lee Myung-bak	19 December 1941	Living	83 years, 167 days	30,483 days
9	Park Geun-hye	2 February 1952	Living	73 years, 122 days	26,786 days
10	Moon Jae-in	24 January 1953	Living	72 years, 131 days	26,429 days
11	Yoon Suk Yeol	18 December 1960	Living	64 years, 168 days	23,544 days
12	Roh Moo-hyun	1 September 1946	23 May 2009	62 years, 264 days	22,910 days
13	Park Chung Hee	14 November 1917	26 October 1979	61 years, 346 days	22,626 days
14	Lee Jae-myung	8 December 1963	Living	61 years, 178 days	22,459 days

List of presidents of South Korea	14
Living	5
Deceased	9

South Korean president's ages

This table charts the age of each president of South Korea at the time of assuming office, upon leaving office, and at the time of death. Where the president is still living, their lifespan and post presidential timespan are calculated up to 4 June 2025.

No.	President	Date of birth	Date of assuming office	Age at assuming office	End of term	Age at end of term	Length of retirement	Date of death	Lifespan
1	Rhee Syng-man	26 March 1875	24 July 1948 (1948-07-24)	73 years, 120 days	26 April 1960 (1960-04-26)	85 years, 31 days	5 years, 84 days	19 July 1965	32,987 days (90 years, 115 days)
2	Yun Po-sun	26 August 1897	13 August 1960 (1960-08-13)	62 years, 353 days	24 March 1962 (1962-03-24)	64 years, 210 days	28 years, 116 days	18 July 1990	33,928 days (92 years, 326 days)
3	Park Chung Hee	14 November 1917	24 March 1962 (1962-03-24)	44 years, 130 days	26 October 1979 (1979-10-26)	61 years, 346 days	00,0010 days [a]	26 October 1979	22,626 days (61 years, 346 days)
4	Choi Kyu-hah	16 July 1919	26 October 1979 (1979-10-26)	60 years, 102 days	16 August 1980 (1980-08-16)	61 years, 31 days	26 years, 67 days	22 October 2006	31,875 days (87 years, 98 days)
5	Chun Doo-hwan	18 January 1931	1 September 1980 (1980-09-01)	49 years, 227 days	24 February 1988 (1988-02-24)	57 years, 37 days	33 years, 272 days	23 November 2021	33,182 days (90 years, 309 days)
6	Roh Tae-woo	4 December 1932	25 February 1988 (1988-02-25)	55 years, 83 days	24 February 1993 (1993-02-24)	60 years, 82 days	28 years, 244 days	26 October 2021	32,468 days (88 years, 326 days)
7	Kim Young-sam	20 December 1927	25 February 1993 (1993-02-25)	65 years, 67 days	24 February 1998 (1998-02-24)	70 years, 66 days	17 years, 271 days	22 November 2015	32,114 days (87 years, 337 days)
8	Kim Dae-jung	6 January 1924	25 February 1998 (1998-02-25)	74 years, 50 days	24 February 2003 (2003-02-24)	79 years, 49 days	6 years, 175 days	18 August 2009	31,271 days (85 years, 224 days)
9	Roh Moo-hyun	1 September 1946	25 February 2003 (2003-02-25)	56 years, 177 days	24 February 2008 (2008-02-24)	61 years, 176 days	1 year, 88 days	23 May 2009	22,910 days (62 years, 264 days)
10	Lee Myung-bak	19 December 1941	25 February 2008 (2008-02-25)	66 years, 68 days	24 February 2013 (2013-02-24)	71 years, 67 days	12 years, 100 days	(living)	30,483 days (83 years, 167 days)
11	Park Geun-hye	2 February 1952	25 February 2013 (2013-02-25)	61 years, 23 days	10 March 2017 (2017-03-10)	65 years, 36 days	8 years, 86 days	(living)	26,786 days (73 years, 122 days)
12	Moon Jae-in	24 January 1953	10 May 2017 (2017-05-10)	64 years, 106 days	9 May 2022 (2022-05-09)	69 years, 105 days	3 years, 26 days	(living)	26,429 days (72 years, 131 days)
13	Yoon Suk Yeol	18 December 1960	10 May 2022 (2022-05-10)	61 years, 143 days	4 April 2025 (2025-04-04)	64 years, 107 days	61 days	(living)	23,544 days (64 years, 168 days)
14	Lee Jae-myung	8 December 1963	4 June 2025 (2025-06-04)	61 years, 178 days	(Incumbent)	(Incumbent)	N/A	(living)	22,459 days (61 years, 178 days)
No.	President	Date of birth	Date of assuming office	Age at assuming office	End of term	Age at end of term	Length of retirement	Date of death	Lifespan

Graphical representation

This is a graphical lifespan timeline of presidents of South Korea as well as their terms in the National Assembly. The presidents are listed in order of office.

Notes

1. Died in office