Korean age explained: how to say your age in Korean

"How old are you?" is one of the first questions you will hear in Korea, because age decides how people talk to each other. It is also where two confusing things meet: the old Korean way of counting age, and the fact that Korean has two sets of numbers. This guide sorts out both, with every example produced by our free Korean numbers converter.

Three ways to count age

Until 2023, Koreans used three different ages side by side:

International age (만 나이) — the age you know: it goes up on your birthday.
Korean age (세는 나이) — you are 1 on the day you are born, and everyone gets one year older on January 1.
Year age (연 나이) — this year minus your birth year, ignoring the birthday.

Since June 28, 2023, international age is the standard for laws, contracts and official documents. In everyday talk, though, many people still give their Korean age, especially older people, so it is worth knowing how it works. A few rules, such as military service and the legal drinking age, still count by calendar year.

Worked example

Someone born on March 15, 2001 gives three different answers on October 1, 2026:

Way of counting	Calculation	Age
International age (만 나이)	2026 − 2001, birthday (March 15) already passed	25
Korean age (세는 나이)	2026 − 2001 + 1	26
Year age (연 나이)	2026 − 2001	25

Said out loud, the international age is 스물다섯 살 (seumuldaseot sal) and the Korean age is 스물여섯 살, pronounced [스물려섯 살] (seumullyeoseot sal). If you are not sure which one someone means, ask: 만으로요? ("in international age?").

살 or 세: which numbers to use

Korean has two number systems. Age uses both, depending on the word after the number:

살 (everyday speech) takes native Korean numbers: 하나, 둘, 셋… The short forms 한, 두, 세, 네 and 스무 are used before 살.
세 (written, formal, forms and news) takes Sino-Korean numbers: 일, 이, 삼… So 25 becomes 이십오 세 (isibo se), often written 만 25세.

You will see 세 on a form or hear it from a doctor; you say 살 when talking about yourself.

Ages 1 to 100 with 살

Age	Korean	Sounds like	Romanized
1	한 살	—	han sal
2	두 살	—	du sal
3	세 살	—	se sal
4	네 살	—	ne sal
10	열 살	—	yeol sal
11	열한 살	—	yeolhan sal
19	열아홉 살	[여라홉 살]	yeorahop sal
20	스무 살	—	seumu sal
21	스물한 살	—	seumulhan sal
25	스물다섯 살	—	seumuldaseot sal
26	스물여섯 살	[스물려섯 살]	seumullyeoseot sal
30	서른 살	—	seoreun sal
35	서른다섯 살	—	seoreundaseot sal
40	마흔 살	—	maheun sal
48	마흔여덟 살	[마흔녀덟 살]	maheunnyeodeol sal
50	쉰 살	—	swin sal
60	예순 살	—	yesun sal
70	일흔 살	—	ilheun sal
99	아흔아홉 살	[아흐나홉 살]	aheunahop sal
100	백 살	—	baek sal

Three things trip learners up in this table:

One to four shrink before 살: 하나 → 한, 둘 → 두, 셋 → 세, 넷 → 네. The same thing happens at 21–24 (스물한, 스물두…).
Twenty is 스무, not 스물, but only on its own. From 21 it goes back to 스물: 스물한 살.
Spelling and sound differ in some ages. 스물여섯 is said [스물려섯] and 마흔여덟 [마흔녀덟], because Korean adds a sound between the two parts. The converter shows the pronunciation for any number, and the native numbers chart lists 1–99.

Above 99, native numbers stop and Korean switches to Sino-Korean: 100 is 백 살.

Asking and answering

몇 살이에요? — How old are you? (polite)
저는 스물다섯 살이에요. — I am 25.
연세가 어떻게 되세요? — the respectful way to ask an older person.

Note the ending: after a word ending in a consonant (살) you use 이에요; after a vowel you use 예요.

Practice it

Type your own age into the Korean numbers converter and pick the "years old" counter to hear it. The 37-counter list shows which other words (people, cups, books) also take native numbers, and the free Korean numbers worksheet gives you a page to practice on paper. New to Korean? Start with the 7-day Learn Korean path. Next guide: how to say your phone number and address in Korean.

General information about how ages are counted, not legal advice. For an official age limit, check the rule that applies to your case.