Annual card spending on pets reach $270 in 2022 as care services industry grows

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A pet owner in South Korea spent more than an average of 350,000 won ($267) on pet care services last year, up by nearly 100,000 won from three years ago, as pets are increasingly considered family members.

According to a big data analysis by Shinhan Card on Monday, a pet owner spent 353,000 won with his or her credit card on pet care services such as at veterinary clinics and pet salons, hotels, and cafes, in 2022, up 91,000 won from 262,000 won in 2019.

The credit card spending on pet services increased every year from 283,000 won per individual in 2020 to 313,000 won in 2021.

A household of four members with a dog or cat, for example, spent an average of 1.41 million won a year on the services.

The number of card spending cases has also surged 21 percent last year from 2019 and pet-owners are spending more in general.

Among the consumers that made card purchases on pet-related services last year, 28 percent spent more than 300,000 won a year, up 3 percentage points from 25 percent in the previous year. The figure was 22 percent in 2019 and 23 percent in 2020.

More than six out of the 10 card spenders were female consumers while 38 percent male counterparts.

Unmarried consumers accounted for 34.2 percent of the entire card spending group, while the newlywed only accounted for 4.4 percent. Households with teenagers took up 30.4 percent and those with grown-up children 18.2 percent.

Korea is also seeing a rise in the number of pet services platforms, which rose 48 percent between 2019 and 2022.

The number of pet hotels and training centers soared 211 percent and 275 percent, respectively, during the cited period, and pet salons and dog cafes 144 percent and 50 percent each.

Data from the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry showed that about one out of four Koreans owned pets as of last year.

“More people spare no expense for pets because of the growing perception that pets are family members,” said an unnamed official from Shinhan Card. “We saw a rise in the platforms that specialize in meeting specific needs related to pets, such as hotels and salons.”