Which K-Pop groups have the most members?

K-pop continues to grow in popularity across the globe, boasting some extremely talented and successful boy and girl groups in the genre. While some K-pop groups like BLACKPINK and Aespa have just four members in their lineup, some groups have a large membership count, with some having as much as 23 members. 

With so many singers, dancers, rappers, visuals, and more vying to become idols, K-pop groups are distinct for categorizing their members into where they best shine. Regardless of the number of members in a group, they always seem to deliver brilliant and energy-driven performances.

From NCT’s 23 members, to the 13 members of the famous group Seventeen, here are 10 K-pop groups with the most members.

NCT

Neo Culture Technology, popularly known as NCT, is a K-pop boy group formed under the highly sought-after agency SM Entertainment. The group originally debuted in 2016 with a whopping 15 members and was divided into three sub-units, namely: NCT127, NCT DREAM, and the non-fixed unit, NCT U. The members’ ages range from late-teens to mid-twenties. If 15 wasn’t enough, the group continues to grow, and currently sits at a magnanimous 23 members. Also, a new sub-unit was formed, called WAYV, although they are promoted mainly in China. Aiming to fulfill an original plan of building an unlimited member count, it seems NCT might continue to reign atop of the groups with the most members as they plan to add more idols in the coming years.  

Apeace

Apeace was a boy group that debuted in 2010, boasting a large number of 21 members under the initial moniker, “Double B 21”. The group was formed by Golden Goose Entertainment and was formerly regarded as the K-pop group with the most members at the time. After a couple of internal adjustments, Double B 21 re-debuted a year later in Japan under the new moniker, Apeace. As the years went on, the group members reduced from 21 to 15, and by 2015, only 12 members remained. The group had three sub-units: Lapis5, Onyx5, and Jade5. In 2021, the group’s Japanese agency announced that Apeace had formally disbanded.

Super Junior

Dubbed the “King of Hallyu Wave” for greatly aiding the mainstream popularity of K-pop music, Super Junior is a boy group that debuted in 2005 under SM Entertainment. The group officially debuted on the scene with 12 members before adding a 13th member a year later. Eventually, Super Junior would let go of three members, rounding the member-count to 10. The group continues to prove their star power and are still releasing music almost two decades after their debut. Super Junior is one of the most prominent groups in the genre and has five subgroups: Super Junior K.R.Y., Super Junior T, Super Junior M, Super Junior H, and Super Junior D&E. Some of their members have also enjoyed solo success.

Seventeen

One of the last decades’ key figures in expanding the international appeal of K-pop is the boy group Seventeen. Debuting in 2015 under Pledis Entertainment, the group consists of 13 members and has three subgroups tagged: the Hip-hop team, Vocal team, and Performance team. The group has been labeled a “self-producing” group as the members are one of the rare groups that enjoy creative control privileges and are often involved in the writing and choreographing of their music and stage performances.

WJSN

WJSN, also known as Cosmic Girls, is a Korean-Chinese girl group that debuted under a collaboration between Starship Entertainment and Yuehua Entertainment in 2016. The group debuted with 12 members but added the 13th member a couple of months later. Like several other K-pop groups on the list, WJSN is also split into four subgroups: Wonder unit, Joy unit, Sweet unit, and Natural unit. Interestingly enough, the subgroups were formed separately, before they were merged to create the group.

Treasure

Treasure is one of the more recent groups to feature a large number of members. The 4th generation K-pop boy group was formed by YG Entertainment and were banded through the Korean reality survival competition, YG Treasure Box. The group debuted as a 12-member boy group in 2019 and continues to enjoy mainstream success since then. While the group was originally intended to feature 13 members, under the moniker Treasure 13, one member, Ha Yoon-bin, left before the official debut to pursue a solo career. 

EXO

Labeled the “Kings of K-pop”, EXO is a Korean-Chinese boy group that needs no introduction due to their massive international success and following. EXO was created by the agency SM Entertainment and debuted with 12 members and two subgroups: EXO-K (Korean) and EXO-M (Mandarin) which were both heavily promoted in both countries. Three of the Chinese members have since left the group, and the old subgroups have been scrapped in favor of the newer EXO-CBX and EXO-SC. While EXO continues to enjoy success as a group, a large number of their members have achieved fame in their solo paths as singers and actors. 

The Boyz

The Boyz is a boy group that debuted in 2017 under IST Entertainment. Before their official debut, they were known as Cre.kerz. The group emerged with 13 members, but the departure of one member made them a dozen. It’s quite common for groups this large to have subgroups, but The Boyz continue to perform and promote all their music as a single group. 

Loona

Loona is a 12-member girl group under the recording companies Blockberry Creative and Universal Music Japan. The group debuted in 2016 and consists of three subgroups: Loona 1/3, Loona Odd Eye Circle, and Loona yyxy. Before their collective debut, each of Loona’s subgroups initially released music separately as part of an 18-month long project.

IZ*ONE

IZ*ONE was a Korean-Japanese girl group that debuted in 2018 under two companies, Swing Entertainment and Off the Record. The group was formed through the survival show Produce 48 and boasted 12 members as its final lineup. The group had no subgroups and was also short-lived, as they announced their official dissolution just two years later in 2021.