Having an idea of a Korean address can come in handy. Especially when you would like to send mail to someone you know living in South Korea or your loved ones are hoping to send you a care package while you’re in South Korea.
In this post, we’ll teach you all you need to know about Korean addresses, plus helpful vocabulary!
All of the Korean vocabulary you’ll learn below will be in Hangeul (Korean Alphabet) with Romanized Korean next to it. We recommend learning the Korean alphabet so you can learn these terms faster and have accurate pronunciation.
Being able to read the Korean alphabet will help you retain the core Korean words you should learn first. It will also improve your overall Korean language learning plan.
If you’d like to have this information with you on the go, make sure to download this free PDF guide on Korean address:
Contents
How to Write a Korean Address
If you stay in South Korea and send mail to someone else in the country, you’ll also want to know how to write the address in Korean first before sending anything out. Writing a Korean address can seem complicated or intimidating at first. It is of great advantage to check out an article like ours for some assistance.
South Korean Address Format
Regardless of whether you are sending a package or a postcard, you will similarly format the address. Typically, you are expected to include your information on each mail item – aka sender’s information. The placement of this generally is in the upper left corner. Essentially, you are writing two addresses each time for the sender and the receiver.
Name
In the address format, you’ll first write the name. This applies to both the sender and receiver’s information. For Korean names, the family name should come first.
Address Line
Below the name, you will write the address itself. Unlike in many Western countries, you’ll write the address in the opposite way. Instead of the street number or name, you’ll start with the largest division, like the city or province, going to the smaller division. This is the usual order of writing the address:
- City or Province
- District or Municipality
- Street name
- Building number
- Apartment number/House number
Postal Code
Finally, below the address, you will add the postal code. They used to be six digits, but only five are now used under the new address system.
Example of a Korean address in Korean
Before learning how to write Korean addresses, it’s best to learn the Korean alphabet first to help you understand the process better. This way, you can easily write not only addresses but also other Korean words, phrases, and sentences. Here is an example of a South Korean address written in the Korean language. We have also included its Korean romanization below.
김서준
서울특별시 강남구 선릉로190길 114
06010
(대한민국)
Romanization:
Kim Seojun
Seoulteukbyeolsi Gangnamgu Seolleungro-190gil 114
06010
(Daehanminguk)
Example of a Korean Address in English
And here is how you can write that address in English. It will be useful to know if you are sending or receiving mail from abroad. You can also use this within South Korea, but mail carriers will find the receiver much faster if you write it in Korean.
Seojun Kim
114, Seolleungro-190gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
06010 South Korea
Other relevant information on Korean addresses
On top of the format of writing Korean addresses, below is other helpful information that you should note.
New Korean address system
The information above shows the new system of writing an address in South Korea, which has only been in use for a few years. In the previous system, you would include the area within the district, but that is no longer necessary. Instead, you will use the names of South Korean streets, as displayed above.
Due to this change, buildings were designated with new building numbers, which has been received with some negative reactions from Koreans. However, especially for us foreigners, it makes navigating South Korea much easier.
Both address systems are still in use, so you will still see addresses written using the old mail system. Your mail may still go through even with the old address system, but try your best to rely on the new format of addresses in South Korea.
Road designations for South Korean addresses
There are three different road designations in the address system used in South Korea.
대로 (daero)
대로 (daero) is designated for the biggest streets in each city where the big roads are.
로- (ro-)
The next one is 로- (ro-), designated for roads or streets smaller than 대로 (daero). These roads usually have 2 to 7 lanes.
길 (gil)
Lastly, roads designated as 길 (gil) are typically the smallest of the bunch, having only one lane. This often branches as smaller streets off a bigger 로- (ro-) designated street.
How to write an address with an apartment number
If the address that you need to write includes an apartment or building, this is what you need to take note of:
동 is added after the building number, and 호 is added to the unit number. For example:
201동 304호 = Bldg. 201 Unit 304
Writing addresses with multistory buildings
An apartment or officetel is a typical building in South Korea. If you are sending mail to someone living in multistory buildings like these, you also need to know and write down the floor number and the apartment or suite number. Just writing down building numbers isn’t enough.
So, for example, if someone lives on the 6th floor, in apartment 33, and the building number is still 114, as presented in the example above, then the written address would look like this:
서울특별시 강남구 선릉로190길 114 6층 33호
#33, 6th Floor, 114, Seolleungro-190gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
What about if the address looked like this instead?
서울특별시 강남구 선릉로190길 33-6?
33-6, Seolleungro-190gil, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
In this case, the building is located on a street, branching off a bigger street that’s too short to have its own street name. All of the buildings on this small street probably have the same building number, 33, in our example, and a separate number follows the hyphenation.
Helpful Tools for Korean Address
Understanding the concept of Korean addresses may be a bit difficult at first. We’ve added some resources below that you can use if you need to write down or locate a Korean address.
Korean Address Generator
To help you become more familiar with Korean addresses, you can use this tool to generate random addresses in Korea.
Korean Address Converter
If you have the address details in Korean, you can run it in this Korean address converter to know how it is written in English.
The generated information also includes the land lot, zip code, and the exact location of the address on their map.
The following are important details to know regarding writing addresses in South Korea. They will also teach you how each city and town in South Korea is constructed. Note that not all of the below information is required to write each and every address.
| Korean | English |
|---|---|
| (juso) | Address |
| (bongtu) | Envelope |
| (sokdal) | Express mail |
| (gwanggoseong upyeon) | Junk mail |
| (pyeonji) | Letter |
| (pyeonjireul sseuda) | Write a letter |
| (jipbaewon) | Mail carrier |
| (ireum) | Name |
| (sopo) | Package |
| (yeopseo) | Postcard |
| (soin) | Postmark |
| (ucheguk) | Post office |
| (banneun saram) | Recipient |
| (bonaeneun saram) | Sender |
| (deunggi) | Registered mail |
| (upyo) | Stamp |
| (upyeonbeonho) | Zip code |
| (do) | Province |
| (si) | City |
| (gun) | Municipality |
| (eup) | Center of a municipality |
| (ri) | Specific area within a neighborhood |
| (myeon) | Villages surrounding the municipality's center |
| (gu) | District within a big city |
| (dong) | Area within a district |
| (ga) | Block |
| (daero) | Big road |
| (ro) | Road (with 2 to 7 lanes) |
| (gil) | Road (with 1 lane) |
“Address” in Korean
The word for “address” in Korean is 주소 (juso).
제 주소는 서울시 강남구 역삼동 123번지입니다. (je jusoneun seoulsi gangnamgu yeoksamdong baegisipsambeonjiimnida.)
My address is 123 Yeoksam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul.
“Post office” in Korean
The Korean word for “post office” is 우체국 (ucheguk).
우체국에서 편지를 보낼 수 있어요. (uchegugeseo pyeonjireul bonael su isseoyo.)
You can send letters at the post office.
“Letter” in Korean
You can say “letter” in Korean as 편지 (pyeonji). However, if you’re referring to “letter” related to the alphabet, the word you should use is 자모 (jumo).
친구에게 편지를 써서 보냈어요. (chinguege pyeonjireul sseoseo bonaesseoyo.)
I wrote a letter to my friend and sent it.
“City” in Korean
“City” in Korean is 시 (si).
서울은 대한민국에서 가장 인구가 많은 도시입니다. (seoureun daehanmingugeseo gajang inguga maneun dosiimnida)
Seoul is the capital city of South Korea.
“Street” in Korean
The word for “street” in Korean is 거리 (geori).
학교에서 우리 집까지 거리가 멀어요. (jeoneun hakgyoeseo uri jipkkaji georiga meoreoyo.)
The distance from school to my house is far.
“Road” in Korean
You can say “road” in Korean as 로 (ro), or 길 (gil).
로 (ro) refers to roads with 2 to 7 lanes, while 길 (gil) is used to talk about roads with a single lane only.
이 도로는 차량 운행이 금지되어 있어요. (i doroneun charyang unhaengi geumjidoeeo isseoyo.)
This road is restricted for vehicle traffic.
“Zip code” in Korean
You can say “zip code” in Korean is 우편번호 (upyeonbeonho).
저희 동네의 우편번호는 12345번입니다. (jeohi dongneui upyeonbeonhoneun manichonsambaekssasibobeonimnida.)
The zip code for our neighborhood is 12345.
Here are some sentences that you can use when talking about addresses in South Korea.
| Korean | English |
|---|---|
(igeo je jusoyeyo.) | This is my address. |
(jeil gakkaun ucheguki eodiyeyo?) | Where is the closest post office? |
| (upyo hana juseyo.) | Can I have one stamp, please? |
| (hanggongpyeoneuro bonae juseyo.) | Please send it as air mail. |
| (i soporeul peurangseuro bonaego sipeoyo.) | I want to send this package to France. |
Wrap Up
Now that you have learned about writing South Korean addresses, you are well-equipped to start sending out mail! You can also start sharing your address with others so that you can also receive mail! Next up, maybe you would like to know how to survive a trip to a Korean bank using Korean?
How do I address envelope to:
Ms Lee, Soonja
229, Eunhasu-ro, Jung-gu,
104, Unit 2002,
Incheon, Republic of Korea 22391
Hi Donna, you can write:
대한민국 인천시 중구 은하수로 229번지
104동 2002호
22391
이순자 님
Hello. If I want to send a letter to South Korea, is it okay to write romanized the address? Or do I have to write in both Korean and romanized? Thank you!!
You can write a romanized address only or both. ^^
Hello, how would you write in korean Lee Felix YP Center, 205 Gangdongdae-ro, Gangdong-gu Seoul, postal code: 05407
Hi! In Korean, it is 서울 강동구 강동대로 205 이펠릭스 YP센터 우편번호 05407. ^^