Guides

How pharmacies work in Korea: what you can buy, when they are open, what to say at the counter, and what to do in an emergency.

1. How to buy medicine at a pharmacy in Korea

   Where to find a pharmacy, how the counter works, how to ask for what you need without Korean, how to pay, and how to read the dose on the box.

2. Pharmacy opening hours in Korea: are they open Sunday?

   Long weekdays, short Saturdays, mostly closed Sundays, a few open on holidays. Why “hours unknown” is not “closed”, and how this site decides “open now”.

3. 24-hour and late-night pharmacies in Korea

   True 24-hour pharmacies are rare, about two dozen nationwide. Late-night ones are not. Where they cluster, how the public ones work, and how to find one.

4. Medicine names in Korean: paracetamol, ibuprofen and more

   The Korean names of the medicines travellers ask for most, with the generic ingredient and the brands on Korean shelves, to point at or read out.

5. Can you buy medicine at a convenience store in Korea?

   When pharmacies are closed, 24-hour convenience stores sell 13 basic medicines: fever reducers, cold remedies, digestive tablets and pain patches.

6. Do you need a prescription in Korea? Prescription vs OTC

   Korea separates prescribing from dispensing and draws the line differently from home. What you can buy by asking, what needs a doctor, what you may bring in.

7. Korean phrases to use at the pharmacy

   Symptom sentences in Korean with pronunciation, the same cards shown on every pharmacy page, plus dose questions and the words you will see on signs.

8. Korean public holidays 2026 and 2027: are pharmacies open?

   Every public holiday for the next two years, which ones empty the cities, which ones are new since 2026, and how to find a pharmacy when most are shut.

9. Medical emergency in Korea: 119 and emergency rooms

   A pharmacy is not the place for an emergency. How to call an ambulance and get an interpreter on the line, when to go to an emergency room, and the cost.

10. Pharmacy receipts in Korea for a travel insurance claim

    What insurers want, what to ask the pharmacist and the clinic for and in what words, how to pay so the claim goes through, and how to fix the usual problems.

11. Sunday and holiday pharmacies: how to use pharm114

    The Korean Pharmaceutical Association’s pharm114 site lists pharmacies open on Sundays, holidays and late nights. How to search it without reading Korean.

12. Finding your usual medicine in Korea by its ingredient

    Brand names change at the border; active ingredients do not. How to read the ingredient off your own pack and match it to a Korean product.

13. Pharmacy, clinic or emergency room? Choosing in Korea

    What a Korean pharmacist can sort out over the counter, the warning signs official guidance says need a doctor, and where a local clinic fits in between.