South Korean residents’ overseas card spending reached a record high of $22.91 billion in 2025, according to data released by the Bank of Korea on Monday. The figure represents a 5.5% increase from the previous record of $21.72 billion set in 2024, driven by a surge in outbound travel and continued, though more moderate, growth in online direct purchases.
The increase in overseas card usage coincides with a 3% rise in the number of South Korean nationals traveling abroad, reaching 29.55 million in 2025, up from 28.686 million in 2024, according to the Korea Culture & Tourism Institute’s Tourism Knowledge Information System. The average transaction amount per card used abroad was $310.
While travel spending led the increase, online direct purchases from overseas retailers saw a more limited growth of 1%, totaling $5.98 billion compared to $5.92 billion the previous year. The Bank of Korea attributed this to the sustained high exchange rate, averaging 1422.16 Korean won to the US dollar throughout 2025.
Credit card spending accounted for $15.693 billion of the total overseas expenditure, a 1.3% increase year-on-year. However, debit card usage experienced a more substantial jump, rising by 15.7% to $7.215 billion, now representing nearly half the value of credit card transactions abroad.
Spending by non-residents using cards within South Korea likewise reached a record high, totaling $14.08 billion, an 18.2% increase from the $11.91 billion recorded in 2024. This indicates a strong recovery in tourism to South Korea, further bolstering the nation’s economy.
