2025 K-POP Global Consumption Hubs: South Korea, Japan, Indonesia Lead, with the United States Rising to 4th Place

The K-POP RADAR, a comprehensive dashboard for K-POP artists operated by music startup SpaceAudity, has released its “2025 K-POP World Map” section focused on countries.

K-POP RADAR analyzed global K-POP trends for the entire year from January 1 to December 31, 2025, by compiling view counts of related videos on YouTube Artist Charts. The country-specific section provides an at-a-glance overview of the most popular artists in each nation, based on data such as national K-POP consumption levels, artist market shares, and growth rate changes.

According to the 2025 country-by-country K-POP consumption analysis, South Korea, Japan, and Indonesia retained positions 1 through 3, identical to the previous year. The United States rose one place to take 4th place, while India dropped to 5th place.

South Korea, as the birthplace of K-POP, demonstrated continued growth by seeing an even higher market share compared to 2024. The United States accounted for 6.25% of global K-POP consumption, rising from 5th to 4th place, with its share increasing by nearly 1 percentage point—indicating that localization strategies and global collaborations are yielding tangible results.

Japan, though still in 2nd place, experienced a decline in its market share from 8.44% to 7.41%, along with a decrease in total view counts, suggesting the market has entered a mature phase. Taiwan entered the Top 10 by rising two consecutive years to reach 9th place, while the United Kingdom surged to 17th place, moving out of the Top 20.

The simultaneous entry of Western countries such as France, Germany, and Canada shows that K-POP consumption is expanding into a more globally diversified stage. In the domestic market, DAY6 moved up from 2nd to 1st place, with aespa and IU ranking 2nd and 3rd respectively. In the U.S. market, Stray Kids maintained 1st place with a 8.63% market share, while in the UK, Rosé topped the list with an overwhelming 11.63% market share.