New Brand Finance data highlights South Korea’s competitive Soft Power built through global commerce, cultural influence, and technology leadership
SEOUL, 27 January 2026 – South Korea ranks 11th in Soft Power with a score of 59.2/100, up one position from 12th in 2025, according to a new iteration of the Global Soft Power Index by Brand Finance.
Brand Finance publishes the Global Soft Power Index based on a survey of more than 150,000 respondents from over 100 countries to gather data on global perceptions of all 193 member states of the United Nations. Thanks to the scope of the survey, the Index is the world’s most comprehensive study on perceptions of nation brands, providing an in-depth analysis of the evolving status of Soft Power as nations navigate significant global changes and challenges.
Soft Power is defined as a nation’s ability to influence the preferences and behaviours of various actors in the international arena (states, corporations, communities, publics, etc.) through attraction and persuasion rather than coercion. Each nation is scored across 55 different metrics to arrive at an overall score out of 100 and ranked in order from 1st to 193rd.
South Korea’s performance in 2026 reflects a nation brand that continues to compete at the top end of the Soft Power Index through a blend of commercial credibility, innovation capacity, and cultural export power. Its rise to 11th globally reinforces a consistent advantage: South Korea is widely recognised for what it produces, and for the global relevance of the industries and culture that carry its presence internationally.
In Business & Trade, South Korea remains one of the Index’s strongest performers, ranking 7th globally for “products and brands the world loves” and 6th for “future growth potential.” It also strengthens its position for “strong and stable economy,” improving two places to rank 20th. Together, these results reinforce perceptions of South Korea as a country whose Soft Power is supported by exportable excellence, trusted commercial capability, and an economy still viewed as globally significant.
South Korea’s advantage is equally clear in Education & Science, where it ranks 5th globally for ‘advanced in technology and innovation,’ and retains a 9th position in space exploration. These standings highlight how strongly South Korea is associated with innovation leadership, particularly as global audiences increasingly link national influence to technology capacity and the ability to shape what comes next.
In Culture & Heritage, South Korea continues to hold elite positions that translate into broad familiarity and global engagement. It ranks 7th for being “influential in arts and entertainment” and 10th for “food the world loves,” reinforcing how entertainment, lifestyle, and cultural exports remain central drivers of the nation brand.
According to the International Trade Council, South Korea has pledged to position the country as one of the world’s “big-five soft powers”, focusing on areas such as music, dramas, webtoons, beauty, and food, with a target to grow cultural exports to USD36 billion by 2030.
Alex Haigh, Managing Director Asia Pacific, Brand Finance, commented:
“South Korea’s Soft Power is built on real-world relevance: what it creates, what it exports, and what global audiences actively choose to engage with. Strong rankings for future growth potential, innovation, and world-loved brands show a nation converting capability into confidence. When culture reinforces that economic credibility, it creates influence that is both scalable and durable in a more competitive global landscape.”
Global Insights: US Soft Power decline accelerates as Japan overtakes the UK to take 3rd place
The Global Soft Power Index 2026 highlights a broad global decline of nation brand perceptions, driven by economic uncertainty, geopolitical tension, and social pressures. Audiences worldwide are more cautious and more likely to scrutinise nations’ behaviour, leading to lower scores across the Index and echoing the trust erosion seen during the COVID-19 period.
Despite retaining 1st place overall, the United States records the steepest overall decline among all nation brands ranked, driven by sharp declines in Reputation (26th, -11) and key nation brand attributes amid international backlash to “America First” policies. Key declines are observed in friendliness, (-32), generosity, (-68) ease of doing business, (-21) support for climate action (-16), political stability, (-8) human rights, (-10) and ethical standards (-4). Nevertheless, the US retains its number one position for Familiarity and Influence, underpinned by continued global leadership in arts and entertainment, (1st) sport, (3rd) iconic brands, (2nd) innovation, (3rd) and space exploration (1st).
Japan’s rise to 3rd, now overtaking the United Kingdom (4th), exemplifies its ability to build Soft Power through a direct experience of the nation brand. Japan has maintained strengths in Business & Trade (1st), Sustainable Future (1st), Education & Science (2nd), and Governance (2nd), while tourism has boosted Familiarity (6th, +1) and related attributes, including appealing lifestyle (4th, +9), visit appeal (8th, +3), friendliness (7th, +12), and fun (21st, +15).
Konrad Jagodzinski, Place Branding Director, Brand Finance, commented:
“The negative shift in the global mood highlights a critical lesson about Soft Power in 2026. Publics are increasingly sensitive to the alignment of values, actions, and outcomes. Nations that fail to demonstrate reliability, credibility, and impact face erosion not only in specific domains but also in broader international reputation and relevance. Soft power is not solely about visibility or size; it is about perception that a nation is delivering on promises implicit in its brand. Nations failing to uphold these promises are penalised by global audiences.”
Brand Finance is the world’s leading brand valuation consultancy. Bridging the gap between marketing and finance, Brand Finance evaluates the strength of brands and quantifies their financial value to help organisations make strategic decisions.
Headquartered in London, Brand Finance operates in over 25 countries. Every year, Brand Finance conducts more than 6,000 brand valuations, supported by original market research, and publishes over 100 reports which rank brands across all sectors and countries.
Brand Finance also operates the Global Brand Equity Monitor, conducting original market research annually on 6,000 brands, surveying more than 175,000 respondents across 41 countries and 31 industry sectors. By combining perceptual data from the Global Brand Equity Monitor with data from its valuation database — the largest brand value database in the world — Brand Finance equips ambitious brand leaders with the data, analytics, and the strategic guidance they need to enhance brand and business value.
In addition to calculating brand value, Brand Finance also determines the relative strength of brands through a balanced scorecard of metrics, compliant with ISO 20671.
Brand Finance is a regulated accountancy firm and a committed leader in the standardisation of the brand valuation industry. Brand Finance was the first to be certified by independent auditors as compliant with both ISO 10668 and ISO 20671 and has received the official endorsement of the Marketing Accountability Standards Board (MASB) in the United States.
Brand is defined as a marketing-related intangible asset including, but not limited to, names, terms, signs, symbols, logos, and designs, intended to identify goods, services, or entities, creating distinctive images and associations in the minds of stakeholders, thereby generating economic benefits.
Brand strength is the efficacy of a brand’s performance on intangible measures relative to its competitors. Brand Finance evaluates brand strength in a process compliant with ISO 20671, looking at Marketing Investment, Stakeholder Equity, and the impact of those on Business Performance. The data used is derived from Brand Finance’s proprietary market research programme and from publicly available sources.
Each brand is assigned a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score out of 100, which feeds into the brand value calculation. Based on the score, each brand is assigned a corresponding Brand Rating up to AAA+ in a format similar to a credit rating.
Brand Finance calculates the values of brands in its rankings using the Royalty Relief approach – a brand valuation method compliant with the industry standards set in ISO 10668. It involves estimating the likely future revenues that are attributable to a brand by calculating a royalty rate that would be charged for its use, to arrive at a ‘brand value’ understood as a net economic benefit that a brand owner would achieve by licensing the brand in the open market.
The steps in this process are as follows:
1 Calculate brand strength using a balanced scorecard of metrics assessing Marketing Investment, Stakeholder Equity, and Business Performance. Brand strength is expressed as a Brand Strength Index (BSI) score on a scale of 0 to 100.
2 Determine royalty range for each industry, reflecting the importance of brand to purchasing decisions. In luxury, the maximum percentage is high, while in extractive industry, where goods are often commoditised, it is lower. This is done by reviewing comparable licensing agreements sourced from Brand Finance’s extensive database.
3 Calculate royalty rate. The BSI score is applied to the royalty range to arrive at a royalty rate. For example, if the royalty range in a sector is 0-5% and a brand has a BSI score of 80 out of 100, then an appropriate royalty rate for the use of this brand in the given sector will be 4%.
4 Determine brand-specific revenues by estimating a proportion of parent company revenues attributable to a brand.
5 Determine forecast revenues using a function of historic revenues, equity analyst forecasts, and economic growth rates.
6 Apply the royalty rate to the forecast revenues to derive brand revenues.
7 Discount post-tax brand revenues to a net present value which equals the brand value.
Brand Finance has produced this study with an independent and unbiased analysis. The values derived and opinions presented in this study are based on publicly available information and certain assumptions that Brand Finance used where such data was deficient or unclear. Brand Finance accepts no responsibility and will not be liable in the event that the publicly available information relied upon is subsequently found to be inaccurate. The opinions and financial analysis expressed in the study are not to be construed as providing investment or business advice. Brand Finance does not intend the study to be relied upon for any reason and excludes all liability to any body, government, or organisation.
The data presented in this study form part of Brand Finance's proprietary database, are provided for the benefit of the media, and are not to be used in part or in full for any commercial or technical purpose without written permission from Brand Finance.
