Payment methods in South Korea

Asia

7methods

5banks

South Koreans spent US$102 billion online in 2022, a figure projected to grow to US$121 billion by 2027, making South Korea one of the top five e-commerce markets in Asia.

Market takeaways

South Koreans spent US$102 billion online in 2022, a figure projected to grow to US$121 billion by 2027, making South Korea one of the top five e-commerce markets in Asia.
E-wallets account for 25% of online transactions, with KakaoPay (38M+ users), Toss Pay (30M+ users), Naver Pay, Samsung Pay, and the government-backed Zero Pay QR scheme all competing for share.
Cards remain the dominant payment method at 64% of online transactions; Visa and Mastercard lead internationally, but local card schemes (BC Card, Lotte, Hyundai, Shinhan, Hana) account for a significant combined share.
Four percent of online purchases — worth approximately US$4.5 billion — are made from cross-border merchants, indicating a moderate appetite for international shopping.
On average, South Koreans spend US$2,093 per year with online merchants, with per-capita spend expected to rise to US$2,357 by 2027.

Population

51.6M

Online population

50.1M

B2C e-commerce

$102B

Banked population

99%

Credit card population

69%

E-commerce of total retail

28%

Payment method breakdown

Card64%
Cash1%
Bank Transfer6%
E-Wallet25%
Other4%

Card scheme breakdown

Visa40%
Mastercard26%
American Express5%
Local Schemes8%
Other21%

Cross-border e-commerce

Cross-border shoppers

Share of e-commerce

Cross-border value (est.)

$4.5B

Featured payment methods in South Korea

Popular options based on coverage and prominence in this market.

Toss Pay

Toss Pay is the payment product of Viva Republica, operator of the Toss super-app — South Korea's largest fintech platform with over 30 million registered users. Toss started as a peer-to-peer bank transfer app and has expanded into cards, investments, insurance, and merchant payments. Toss Pay is one of the fastest-growing checkout options among South Korean online retailers and is especially popular with the 20–40 age demographic.

Zero Pay

Zero Pay is a government-backed QR code payment scheme launched in 2019 to support small merchants by eliminating card processing fees (or reducing them to near-zero). It is operated through a consortium of banks and fintech apps — including KakaoPay, Naver Pay, and Samsung Pay — and uses a common QR standard. While adoption has been uneven, Zero Pay provides a low-cost alternative to card acceptance for smaller Korean businesses.

PayCo

PayCo is a digital wallet operated by NHN (formerly NHN Entertainment / NHN Commerce), one of South Korea's major internet companies. It enables card-linked online payments, loyalty point integration, and offline NFC payments. PayCo has significant user penetration through NHN's game and commerce platforms and is accepted by a broad range of South Korean online merchants.

Samsung Pay

Samsung's smartphone wallet supporting tap-to-pay and online payments, widely used in Korea. Operator: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.. Est. users: Tens of millions of users (2024).

Naver Pay

Naver's dominant online checkout and points-based payment service across Korean e-commerce. Operator: Naver Financial Corporation. Est. users: 30 million+ users (2024).

SSG Pay

Shinsegae Group's wallet for payments across its online and offline retail network. Operator: Shinsegae I&C (Shinsegae Group). Est. users: Millions of users (2024).

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Featured banks in South Korea

Major institutions operating in this market.

KB Kookmin Bank

Seoul, South Korea

KB Kookmin Bank is South Korea's largest bank, part of KB Financial Group, offering retail, corporate, and investment banking.

Shinhan Bank

Seoul, South Korea

Shinhan Bank is part of Shinhan Financial Group, one of South Korea's leading banks with retail, corporate, and investment banking operations across Asia.