Top 10 Most Popular K-Pop Boy Groups (2020)

The following boy bands are considered to be the most popular and successful in the world. Since “Gangnam Style” went viral in 2012, numerous K-pop bands have taken the world by storm! So let’s check out these top 10 most popular K-pop boy groups!

Top 10 Most Popular K-Pop Boy Groups (2019)

1. BTS
2. EXO
3. Wanna One
4. NCT
5. Got7
6. SEVENTEEN
7. Monsta X
8. Stray Kids
9. WINNER
10. ASTRO

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite boy group in the poll at the end of the list. If your favorite group isn’t included on the list, leave a comment in the comment section below!

Members: Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, Jungkook

Years Active: 2013–present

Label: Big Hit Entertainment, Pony Canyon, Def Jam Japan, Columbia

The first K-pop group to perform at the American Music Awards and win a Billboard Music Award, and the first South Korean act to reach 10 million followers on Twitter, BTS, also known as Bangtan Boys and Beyond the Scene, has put the world under the K-pop spell! They are considered to be the most tweeted about celebrity in 2017: they were liked and retweeted more than half a billion times worldwide! The band is comprised of seven members: RM, J-Hope, Jimin, V, Jin, Suga, and Jungkook. BTS blend dance-oriented K-pop with hip-hop influences; they compose, produce, and write lyrics for performances themselves.

Members: Xiumin, Suho, Lay, Baekhyun, Chen, Chanyeol, D.O., Kai, Sehun

Years Active: 2012–present

Label: SM Entertainment, Avex Trax

EXO was formed by S.M. Entertainment in 2011. The band made their debut in 2012 with twelve members – they were separated into two subgroups, EXO-M and EXO-K, performing music in different languages (Mandarin and Korean respectively). The K-pop boy band was considered the "most influential celebrity" by Forbes Korea Power Celebrity in both 2014 and 2015! Currently, EXO consists of nine members: Xiumin, Baekhyun, Suho, Lay, Chen, Chanyeol, Sehun, D.O., and Kai.

Members: Yoon Ji-sung, Ha Sung-woon, Hwang Min-hyun, Ong Seong-wu, Kim Jae-hwan, Kang Daniel, Park Ji-hoon, Park Woo-jin, Bae Jin-young, Lee Dae-hwi, Lai Guan-lin

Years Active: 2017–present

Label: YMC Entertainment, Stone Music Entertainment, Swing Entertainment

Wanna One has been formed by CJ E&M, and it’s the second group in this list that was formed through the 2017 series Produce 101 Season 2! Wanna One has been chosen as the Best New K-Pop Act of 2017 (Billboard). With their electro-pop tracks and highly-stylized choreography garnering a lot of attention, the boy band became a top act in Korea from its very formation on Produce 101 in 2017. Even though they are planned to disband by the end of 2018, after which its members plan to focus on their solo careers, there’s still time left for the group to impress their fans. Wanna One consists of eleven members: Ji Seong, Sung Woon, Min Hyun, Seong Woo, Ji Hoon, Woo Jin, Jae Hwan, Kang Daniel, Jin Young, Dae Hwi, and Kuan Lin.

Members: WinWin, Jeno, Jisung, Yuta, Jungwoo, Johnny, Haechan, Doyoung, Ten, Mark, Jaehyun, Jaemin, Renjun, Chenle, Taeil, Lucas, Taeyong, and Kun

Years Active: 2016–present

Label: SM Entertainment, Avex Trax

NCT is a highly popular k-pop boy group, an interesting concept with an unlimited number of members. NCT stands for “Neo Culture Technology”. It consists of 21 members (!) now. One more interesting fact is that the band is divided into many sub-units that are based in many various cities of the world! NCT U was the first group’s unit to debut (in April 2016) and was introduced as the main group of NCT. At first, it announced only two members - Mark and Jaehyun, only later adding 7 other members. NCT 127 was the second sub-unit, NCT Dream and WayV appeared later. Oh? And do you know that NCT127 is based in Seoul, while other sub-unit, WayV, is located in China?

Members: Jinyoung, Yugyeom, BamBam, Mark, Youngjae, JB, and Jackson

Years Active: 2014–present

Label: JYP Entertainment, Sony Music Entertainment

Got7 is a K-pop boy band formed by JYP Entertainment. It is composed of seven multinational members who come from the US, Thailand, South Korea, and Hong Kong: JB, BamBam, Mark, Jackson, Yugyeom , Jinyoung, and Youngjae. Debuting at the beginning of 2014 with mini-album “Got It?”, the band gained popularity pretty fast. Their performances on stage often incorporate street dancing and various elements of martial arts tricking, so it’s never boring!

Members: S.Coups, Jeonghan, Joshua, Jun, Hoshi, Wonwoo, Woozi, DK, Mingyu, The8, Seungkwan, Vernon, Dino

Years Active: 2015–present

Label: Pledis Entertainment

Despite the group’s name, Seventeen (also stylized as SVT) consists of only thirteen members: S.Coups, Jeonghan, Joshua, Jun, DK, Mingyu, The8, Seungkwan, Hoshi, Wonwoo, Woozi, Vernon, and Dino. However, sometimes, the boy band did consist of 16 members! So then what does the name Seventeen signify? It turns out that the number signifies the medium age of the members at the time of band formation! The group is divided into three teams, each with a different area of specialization: vocal, hip-hop, and performance. Moreover, they are involved in composition and production of their own choreography and discography, so they even have been given the nickname of a “self-producing” idol group. The group was formed by Pledis Entertainment in 2015.

Members: I.M, Jooheon, Minhyuk, Wonho, Shownu, Kihyun and Hyungwon

Years Active: 2015–present

Label: Mercury Tokyo, Maverick, Starship, Epic, Columbia UK

Formed through the TV talent show “No. Mercy”, Monsta X debuted in 2015 with their first album “Trespass”. It didn’t take long for this seven-member Korean hip-hop band to take over North America! “The Clan”, their first full-length studio album, took the number one spot on Billboard’s World Albums in the US! The band consists of 7 members: Minhyuk, Shownu, Wonho, Hyungwon, Kihyun, Joohoney, and I.M.

Members: Lee Know, Hyunjin, Felix, Seungmin, I.N, Woojin, Changbin, Bang Chan, and Han

Years Active: 2017–present

Label: JYP

This K-pop group didn’t get its name just for no reason. Stray Kids is how the reality competition show is called! After going through the competition, the chosen boys formed the K-pop boy group of the same name. It debuted in 2018 with 9 members: Woojin, Changbin, Hyunjin, Han, Lee Know, Felix, Seungmin, I.N, and Bang Chan. With their super carefree and wild image, the band became a global hit with their first album being number one in iTunes Charts in multiple countries!

Members: Mino, Seunghoon, Seungyoon, Jinwoo

Years Active: 2014–present

Label: YG

Winner was also formed through a reality survival show! The show was called Win: Who Is Next and it revolved around two teams who compete against each other in who is best in performing, songwriting, and choreography. Fans determined the winners, so that’s basically how the Winner was born! Their debut in 2014 was epic; they even were called “Monster rookies” for their unprecedented success. The K-pop boy band consists of 44 members: Seunghoon, Mino, Jinwoo, and Seungyoon.

Members: Sanha, Jinjin, MJ, Moonbin, Eunwoo, and Rocky

Years Active: 2016–present

Label: Fantagio

Astro is a K-pop boy group that consists of 6 members: Jinjin, Moonbin, Sanha, MJ, Rocky, and Eunwoo. Before debuting, they all were iTeen Boys while training in a talent development program under Fantagio iTeen. Soon, they starred in a web drama series “To Be Continued”, and only after that, they debuted with the mini-album Spring Up in 2016. Billboard even named them one of the best new K-pop groups of the year!