Korean pop culture, ranked by the numbers · 한류 랭킹
한국 TV 역대 최고 시청률 드라마
MBC's You and I holds the record: 66.9% of Korean TV households watched its final episode in April 1998. All 16 dramas here aired on terrestrial TV between 1991 and 2004, and eight passed 60%.
Data as of
| Rank | Drama | Network | Years aired | Peak rating (%) | Measured by | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | You and I그대 그리고 나 | MBC | 1997–98 | 66.9% | MSK | 1, 2 |
| 2 | First Love첫사랑 | KBS2 | 1996–97 | 65.8% | MSK | 1, 3 |
| 3 | What Is Love사랑이 뭐길래 | MBC | 1991–92 | 64.9% | MSK | 1, 4 |
| 4 | Sandglass모래시계 | SBS | 1995 | 64.5% | MSK | 1, 5 |
| 5 | Hur Jun허준 | MBC | 1999–2000 | 63.5% | AC Nielsen Korea | 1, 6 |
| 6 | A Sunny Place of the Young젊은이의 양지 | KBS2 | 1995 | 62.7% | MSK | 1, 7 |
| 7 | Sons and Daughters아들과 딸 | MBC | 1992–93 | 61.1% | MSK | 1, 8 |
| 8 | Taejo Wang Geon태조 왕건 | KBS1 | 2000–02 | 60.2% | AC Nielsen Korea | 1, 9 |
| 9 | Eyes of Dawn여명의 눈동자 | MBC | 1991–92 | 58.4% | MSK | 1, 10 |
| 10 | Dae Jang Geum (Jewel in the Palace)대장금 | MBC | 2003–04 | 57.8% | AC Nielsen Korea | 1, 11 |
| 11 | See and See Again보고 또 보고 | MBC | 1998–99 | 57.3% | MSK | 1, 12 |
| 12 | Truth진실 | MBC | 2000 | 56.5% | AC Nielsen Korea | 1, 13 |
| 13 | Lovers in Paris파리의 연인 | SBS | 2004 | 56.3% | TNS Media Korea | 14, 15 |
| 14 | Jealousy질투 | MBC | 1992 | 56.1% | MSK | 1, 16 |
| 15 | Blowing of the Wind바람은 불어도 | KBS2 | 1995–96 | 55.8% | MSK | 1, 7 |
| 16 | Men of the Bath House목욕탕집 남자들 | KBS2 | 1995–96 | 53.4% | MSK | 1, 7 |
Peak rating is a drama's highest single-episode household rating: the share of TV-owning households watching that episode. Figures and order follow the Nielsen-based top-50 list in Wikipedia's "Korean drama" article, which covers dramas from 1992 on and leaves out shows still airing.1 "Measured by" names the firm in Nielsen Korea's line that was operating at the time: Media Service Korea (MSK) until AC Nielsen bought it in August 1999, then AC Nielsen Korea, which became AGB Nielsen in 2005 and Nielsen Korea in 2013. The same article says MSK's panel covered only the Seoul Capital Area until AC Nielsen expanded it nationwide, although its list labels the earlier figures nationwide, so the pre-1999 figures carry that caveat.1 The exception is Lovers in Paris, whose 56.3% is TNS Media Korea's figure.1415 Reported peaks for the same drama can differ by about a point between firms and outlets (see #5 and #10 below). The list stops at 16 because the next two places, Gook Hee and Trap of Youth (tied at 53.1% in the compilation), could not be confirmed elsewhere. All 16 aired on terrestrial networks (KBS, MBC and SBS). The highest-rated cable drama, JTBC's The World of the Married, peaked at 28.371%.117
MBC aired this 58-episode weekend drama from October 11, 1997 to April 26, 1998. Its final episode drew a 66.9% household rating, the highest single-episode figure for any Korean drama in the compilation, and the series averaged 43.7% across its run.21
Choi Jin-sil (최진실) and Park Sang-won (박상원) led the cast.2
KBS2 aired the 66-episode weekend drama from September 7, 1996 to April 20, 1997. Its final broadcast reached 65.8%, and the series averaged 52.6% over its whole run.3
It starred Choi Soo-jong (최수종), Lee Seung-yeon (이승연) and Bae Yong-joon (배용준). After Bae's later drama Winter Sonata made him popular in Japan, NHK aired First Love there in 2005.3
MBC's weekend family drama premiered on November 23, 1991 and ended on May 31, 1992.181 DramaWiki's ratings list dates its 64.9% peak to May 24, 1992, a week before the finale.7
MBC's own classic-drama channel bills it as the Korean drama with the highest average rating of all time. Choi Min-soo (최민수) starred.1819
SBS aired the 24-episode series from January 9 to February 16, 1995. Written by Song Ji-na (송지나) and directed by Kim Jong-hak (김종학), it follows three friends through the political oppression of 1970s and 1980s Korea, and its reenactment of the 1980 Gwangju Uprising mixes in archival footage.5
Lee Jung-jae (이정재), later the lead of Squid Game, played the heroine's silent bodyguard, in what was meant to be a small supporting role.20
MBC's 64-episode period drama about the Joseon-era doctor Heo Jun ran from November 22, 1999 to June 27, 2000, with Jun Kwang-ryul (전광렬) in the title role. Its director, Lee Byung-hoon (이병훈), went on to make Dae Jang Geum (#10).21
Reported peaks differ: the compilation lists 63.5%, a WikiTree ranking of period dramas gives 63.7%, and the drama's Wikipedia article rounds it to 64%.1621
MBC's 64-episode weekend drama ran from October 3, 1992 to May 9, 1993. It follows a son and daughter, fraternal twins, in a family that favours sons, and starred Choi Soo-jong and Kim Hee-ae (김희애).8
Its 49.1% average across the run is the second-highest average for a Korean drama, according to Xportsnews.24
MBC aired the series from October 7, 1991 to February 6, 1992, with Chae Shi-ra (채시라) and Park Sang-won in the leads. With a ₩7.2 billion budget, shoots in China and the Philippines, more than 270 actors and 21,000 extras, it was one of the first Korean dramas filmed in full before broadcast.27
Director Kim Jong-hak and writer Song Ji-na made Sandglass (#4) next.275 Park Sang-won was in four of the top nine: Eyes of Dawn, Sandglass, First Love and You and I.28
Also known as Jewel in the Palace, MBC's 54-episode period drama ran from September 15, 2003 to March 23, 2004. Lee Young-ae (이영애) played Jang-geum, an orphaned palace kitchen cook who becomes the king's first female physician.29
Reports of its peak differ. The compilation and MBC's own channel give 57.8%, its Wikipedia article gives 57.1%, and a March 2004 report citing Nielsen Media Research gave 56.8%, which would place it #11.1112930
Every drama above aired on a terrestrial network. Cable channels reach smaller audiences, and their record is far lower: JTBC's The World of the Married (부부의 세계) ended on May 16, 2020 with a 28.371% nationwide rating, the highest ever for a Korean cable drama.171