The Top 10 Most Popular K-Pop Boy Groups Worldwide

1. BTS

There’s no way you haven’t heard of BTS. They are known all around the globe and are considered one of the best K-pop boy groups. It has deserved fame, as its seven members even co-write and co-produce a lot of their material. They began forming as a group in 2010 but made their debut only in 2013. Soon after that, the world got to know their name!

In 2017, the Korean Wave reached the Us, and it was BTS who made a huge contribution to it. The group received the Order of Cultural Merit from the South Korean President for their help in popularizing Korean culture and language. By that time, the band had already broken many sales records and became known in America. In 2018, they got the name of the first Korean act to top the US Billboard 200 chart and even reached first place on the US Billboard Global 200 and Hot 100.

The best-selling artists ever in Korean history, BTS boost worldwide music sales and attract many tourists (it’s said one in every 13) who visit their country. According to Time’s top 35 and top 100 lists, they are one of the most influential people on the Internet and globally.

Learn more about the group in the article BTS | K-Pop Idol Group Profile, Members, Songs.

• Members: J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, Suga, Jin, Jungkook
• Years Active: 2013 – present
• Labels: Big Hit Entertainment, Pony Canyon, Def Jam Japan, Columbia
• Albums: Dark & Wild, Wings, Love Yourself: Tear, Map of The Soul: 7, Be; Japanese: Wake Up, Youth, Face Yourself, Map of The Soul: 7 The Journey

2. EXO

Here’s another popular and successful K-pop boy group on the list! EXO made their debut in 2012. Originally, there were two groups – EXO-K (performing in Korean) and EXO-M (performing in Mandarin). However, they united into one group after the release of EP Overdose in 2014.

Despite their unification, they continue to release music not only in Korean but also in Mandarin. At the same time, they have become a global force, topping the charts even in the US. Like BTS, the previous group on the list, they’ve made a lot for the Hallyu Wave (or Korean Wave). These ”Kings of K-pop” (as they were named by international and South Korea outlets) were called the most powerful celebrities in 2015/2016 (by Forbes). Also, they got the name of the most over-performing artists on social media in 2018 (also Forbes).

• Members: Xiumin, Suho, Lay, Baekhyun, Chen, Chanyeol, D.O., Kai, Sehun
• Years Active: 2012 – present
• Labels: SM Entertainment, Avex
• Albums: Xoxo, Exodus, Ex’Act, The War, Don’t Mess Up My Tempo, Obsession, Countdown

3. NCT

In 2016, a pre-debut band called SR14B (formed in far 2014) transformed into NCT (stands for “Neo Culture Technology”). SM Entertainment introduced a new K-pop boy group with a new concept. Its members originate not only from Korea but from various countries, and their number is unlimited. And it doesn’t end in just this. NCT is split into many sub-units, each one is targeting a different audience (the age and countries of which varies).

NCT U is NCT’s main group; NCT 127 is Seoul focused but composed of members from five different countries; NCT Dream is focused on a much younger audience and has an age limit for its members (they are under 20); WayV is based in China.

It seems like the group starts some kind of evolution, let’s say the change of K-pop nature. K-pop culture will expand on all continents for sure!

• Members: NCT U (23 members): Taeli, Doyoung, Jaehyun, Taeyong, Ten, Mark, Yuta, Winwin, Haechan, Renjun, Jeno, Jaemin, Chenle, Jisung, Johnny, Jungwoo, Lucas, Kun, Xiaojun, Hendery, Yangyang, Shotaro, Sungchan
• Years Active: 2016–present
• Labels: SM, Avex Trax
• Albums: NCT 2018 Empathy, NCT 2020 Resonance Pt. 1; NCT 127: Regular-Irregular, Awaken, Neo Zone, Awaken the World

Check out NCT Profile, History & Facts, the related and more detailed post about the band.

4. MONSTA X

One of the top most popular K-pop groups, MONSTA X was formed after the talent show ”No Mercy”. Their name has two meanings. According to the first one, it’s ”Monsters conquering the K-pop scene”, and the second – ”My Star” (”mon” equals in meaning to ”my” in French). They made their debut in 2015 and it didn’t take them a long time to gain many fans.

The band became popular in North America pretty fast, with their first full-length album taking the first spot on Billboard’s World Albums in America. They even received an official gold certification for their first Japanese song ”Spotlight”. There were sold out more than 100,000 copies! Aside from their group activities, the members are busy doing mixtapes, collage, covers, or participating in various shows.

• Members: Shownu, Minhyuk, Kihyun, Hyungwon, Joohoney, I.M
• Years Active: 2015–present
• Labels: Starship, Mercury Tokyo, Maverick, Epic, Columbia UK
• Albums: The Clan Pt. 2.5: The Final Chapter, Take.1 Are You There?, Take.2 We Are Here, Fatal Love, Piece, Phenomenon, All About Luv

5. SuperM

SM Entertainment, South Korea’s largest entertainment company, maintains not only groups and solo careers of its members but also supergroup. SuperM is the supergroup formed in 2019. That means they are like ”Avengers” but in the music industry. Marvel rules the box office – there’s a Thor, Iron Man, and Avengers each have its movie. However, they became super powerful once united together as The Avengers.

That’s exactly how SuperM works. Its members are busy with their careers and remain in their original groups but also join together for certain albums or tours. That’s why they are considered a supergroup. The band includes already established idols – SHINee’s Taemin (debuted in 2008), NCT’s Ten, Taeyong, Lucas, and Mark (debuted in 2016/2019), as well as EXO’s Baekhyun and Kai (debuted in 2012).

Los Angeles Times called SuperM ”the next phenomenon in K-pop”. Surprisingly for many fans (it was even criticized by some of them), they debuted in the US. It is quite an unusual move for a K-pop group.

SM Entertainment unites Korean and American music (in case with SuperM) to make K-pop more accessible in the West. So, the band gave their first concert in Los Angeles and it had immense success. Their debuting self-titled EP took first place at the Billboard 200! That made them the first Asian artists of all time to top the American chart with a debut release. Then, the band successfully made their debut on television (The Ellen Show) and started their first tour (starting from Nort America and then extending to Europe and Latin America). In 2020, SuperM hold a live concert in front of 75,000 real-time viewers from more than a hundred countries!

• Members: Baekhyun, Taemin, Kai, Taeyong, Ten, Lucas, Mark
• Years Active: 2019 – present
• Labels: SM Entertainment, Capitol Records
• Albums: SuperM, Super One

6. Stray Kids

One of the most popular K-pop bands, Stray Kids was formed through the survival TV show of the same name. There, the CEO of JYP Entertainment harshly criticized their work. The participants had to write good quality performances and texts to shirt deadlines. No wonder that now they produce/write all their material!

The members of the band were handpicked by the group leader, Bang Chan. It’s something new in the K-pop industry for sure! It’s not an executive or creative director but the leader of the future band who rules over the process!

Since their debut in 2018, Stray Kids stay loyal to hip hop beats. They are literally providing a break from the pop dominating on charts these days. They also stay dedicated to their central concept of freedom, their stylish streetwear style, and music focused on today’s youth (with the themes of frustration and anger dominating).

• Members: Lee Know, Changbin, Han, Felix, Seungmin, I.N, Hyunjin, Bang Chan
• Years Active: 2017 – present
• Labels: JYP Entertainment
• Albums: Go Live

7. SEVENTEEN

This boy band isn’t composed of seventeen members as you might think. The name of the group refers to the members’ average age at the time when it was formed. Thirteen members is quite a lot, isn’t it? That’s the reason why Seventeen is split into three teams, each is responsible for a particular area (vocal, hip hop, or performance).

Each of them has it’s own leader. The leaders, in turn, form their unit. May seem a bit confusing for K-pop newbies, yeah? However, the size is also their benefit, as it creates many different possible ways for visual storytelling.

The boy band is known to be heavily engaged in the creation of many of its materials. They are involved in the production and composition of many of their performances and albums, something that is rare to see in the K-pop industry.

• Members: S.Coups, Jeonghan, Joshua, Jun, Hoshi, Wonwoo, Woozi, DK, Mingyu, The8, Seungkwan, Vernon, Dino
• Years Active: 2015–present
• Labels: Pledis
• Albums: Love & Letter, Teen, Age, An Ode

8. The Boyz

Comprised of twelve members, The Boyz has been drawing attention since its debut in 2017. They are known as the champions of the survival show Road to Kingdom*. In fact, many of the members were contestants in different shows before the group’s debut. They all even had their web variety show ”Flower Snack”, which gave them a lot of fans. Now, they are dominating music charts and gaining various awards. The Boyz is the K-pop boy group to look out for.

Talking about their dance performances, they are extremely eye-catching and seamless. When you are watching so many members dancing together, it surprises how synchronized they are with one another! Each of the members stands out and shows their unique charms – from the most boyish to the cutest appearance ever!

*However skilled, passionate, eye-catching, and hungry for success they were at the very beginning of their artistic path, it’s not easy to get recognition these days. The industry is rapidly growing, let’s say even explodes internationally. Thus, more strong competition comes with it. That’s where the Korean Mnet Competition show Road to Kingdom helps. Its aim is to make underrated boy groups, from newcomers to senior groups, compete with each other. Hence, the show helps to grow the groups’ fanbases. Like in any show, there’s should be a winner who would take home a much bigger reward. In this case, the pass to Kingdom (the sequel of the show that will end in competition against an experienced lineup), the series of big leagues, is the reward.

• Members: Hyunjae, Jacob, Younghoon, Juyeon, Kevin, Eric, New, Q, Ju Haknyeon, Sangyeon, Sunwoo
• Years Active: 2017 – present
• Labels: Cre.ker (Kakao M), Ariola Japan, NetEase
• Albums: Reveal

9. PENTAGON

Formed through the survival show Pentagon Maker, K-pop boy group Pentagon debuted in 2016. In 2020, they participated in a popular competition Road to Kingdom, another Mnet’s reality show. Eventually, they reached third place in the first elimination round.

Their first win in the music show was on SBS MTV’s The Show. The boy band is considered a “high-speed records man”. They are the fastest to debut in Japan, the fastest concert sold out, and the fastest domestic solo concert.

Moreover, the band made success with their Korean EP Ceremony becoming their first entry into America’s charts and making it to the Billboard’s world chart at 14th place. Their second album was Japanese and it reached number 8 on Billboard Japan.

Pentagon is not afraid of showcasing not only their fierce side on stage but also more loose moments. Undoubtedly, their readiness to be different and not stick to one image is something that has earned them fame around the world.

• Members: Hui, Hongseok, Yeo One, YanAn, Yuto, Kino, Wooseok, Shinwon, Jinho,
• Years Active: 2016 – present
• Labels: Cube Entertainment, Universal Japan
• Albums: Universe: The History, Universe: The Black Hall

10. CIX

Formed by C9 Entertainment in 2019, CIX is remembered in the rookie history of K-pop. They are the second fastest band in South Korea to win a music show shortly after debut! They wowed everyone on SBS MTV’s The Show. Their seven-day récord loses only to WINNER, who set the record of winning in six days.

Two of the five members, Seunghun and BX, originally were trainees for YG Entertainment. BX participated in its survival show Mixnine, which was created to form one new male and one female group. He made it to the end only to witness the whole project canceled because of contractual problems. Then, he and Seunghun competed in Treasure Box, a similar YG show, but both didn’t make it to the end. Soon, they decided to leave YG and join another company, C9. Jinyoung, another member of the group, originally was in WANNAONE. After it’s disbandment, he preferred joining CIX over establishing a solo career.

As for the name of the group, CIX means “Complete in X/Unknown/Uncertainties”. The members say they all have not only positives but also areas where they are lacking. However, when they are together, they fill the missing areas of each other.

CIX is not the first K-pop band to address social issues, but the stories they told look somehow different than anything else you’ve seen. The members show the stories they have experienced in some way. However, rather than delve into personal details portraying them as individuals, they show a bigger picture reflecting anyone who is watching.

• Members: Yonghee, Bae Jinyoung, Hyunsuk, Seunghun, BX
• Years Active: 2019 – present
• Labels: C9 Entertainment, Warner Japan

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