The purpose of this research is to conduct an empirical analysis regarding Korea’s ‘Marine Protected Areas (MPA)’ from an international comparative perspective. The authors would like to present the policy direction of marine protected areas based on the result of the research. The result of this study can be summarized in the following manner: First, the total designated size of marine protected areas in Korea is very small compared to the sizes of other OECD nations . Second, while some nations have expanded the extent of marine protected areas in accordance with international agreements and criteria, Korea has not done so. Accordingly, we propose the designated dimensions of marine protected areas should be constantly expanded to keep pace with international trends.