The number of matchmaking agencies that connect prospective brides and grooms in South Korea has risen steadily, while wedding venues have continued to decline. The two businesses are moving in opposite directions even as the country's marriage count recovers.
Matchmaking Agencies Expanded Through the Pandemic
According to the National Tax Service's tax statistics portal and its data on the 100 largest consumer-facing business categories, there were 2,176 registered matchmaking agency operators nationwide in August. That is up 557, or 34.40%, from 1,619 in 2016. Matchmaking agencies introduce potential spouses or arrange matches for people seeking to marry.
The number rose from 1,568 operators in 2018 to 1,596 in 2019. It reached 1,680 in 2020, the year COVID-19 spread, then 1,695 in 2021 and 1,823 in 2022.
Growth continued after that. The figure climbed to 1,904 in 2023 and 1,968 in 2024, and last year it passed the 2,000 mark at 2,090. This year began at 2,090 in January and has kept rising, raising the possibility that the total will approach 2,200 by year-end.
Wedding venues, by contrast, contracted sharply over the same period. There were 762 registered wedding venue operators nationwide in August, down 336, or 30.60%, from 1,098 in 2016.
The number held above 1,000 as recently as 2017, at 1,032, before falling to 951 in 2018 and 890 in 2019. It dropped to 750 in 2022, after the pandemic. The figure bottomed at 714 in 2024, rebounded to 755 last year and has hovered around the 760 level this year.
Marriages Recover, but the Industry Diverges
Marriages themselves have been increasing. Data from Statistics Korea's Korean Statistical Information Service (KOSIS) showed marriages hit a record low of 191,690 in 2022, then rose to 193,657 in 2023 and 222,412 in 2024. Last year the total reached 240,326, the highest since 2018. That also exceeded the 239,159 recorded in 2019, before the pandemic.
The increase has continued this year. Marriages in July totaled 22,282, up 1,890, or 9.3%, from a year earlier. That is the highest for the month of July since 23,571 in 2015. For the January-July period, the cumulative total was 146,656, the most in eight years, since 152,458 in 2018.
Factors cited for the rise include the arrival of the second echo-boom generation, those born between 1991 and 1995, at a typical marrying age, and a more favorable view of marriage spreading among younger people.