A penile implant is a surgically placed device, either two flexible rods or an inflatable three-part prosthesis, used to treat erectile dysfunction once medication, injection therapy and vacuum devices have not worked. It is a functional, reconstructive procedure, not a cosmetic one, and it is the one step on the erectile dysfunction treatment ladder that cannot be undone.
Every figure on this page carries its source and the date it was checked. See the methodology line at the foot of the page.
Korean clinics publish these as the “2-piece” and “3-piece” options. Worth knowing before you compare quotes: Korean-language price lists split the two and price them thousands apart, while the English-language listings aimed at international patients mostly quote a single band covering both. So a foreign quote that names no device type is not a complete quote. Get the device and the type in writing.
| Malleable rods (published as “2-piece”) | Inflatable (published as “3-piece”) | |
|---|---|---|
| How it works | Two flexible rods sit inside the corpora cavernosa. You bend the penis down when not in use and up for intercourse | Two cylinders in the corpora, a pump in the scrotum, a saline reservoir behind the pubic bone. You pump to inflate and press a release to deflate |
| Flaccid state | Permanently semi-rigid. This is the main trade-off and the reason the other device exists | Deflates, so the flaccid state sits and looks closer to normal |
| Mechanically | Nothing to fail. Simpler device, simpler operation | More moving parts; device revision over the years is a known possibility, not a rare event |
| Where it sits in the quote | The bottom of the $8,100–$13,500 international-patient band | The top of it |
| Devices named by clinics | AMS (US), Coloplast (Denmark), Promedon (Argentina) | AMS (US), Coloplast (Denmark) |
The cylinders or rods are placed inside the corpora cavernosa (the two erectile chambers that run the length of the shaft) through a single incision. In the inflatable device the pump is positioned inside the scrotum and the reservoir behind the pubic bone, so no part of the device is externally visible and no part of it is worn. Clinics publishing this procedure name AMS and Coloplast as their sources and cite the selection criteria openly: AMS for its per-size model range and articulated rods, Coloplast for one-touch automatic deflation and a hydrophilic coating. Ask which device and which size is written into your contract, by name, before you travel. See /verification/.
It restores rigidity. It does not restore spontaneous erection: the device is operated deliberately, every time. It does not change sensation, orgasm or ejaculation, because those are not carried by the tissue being replaced. It does not add size, and a slightly shorter erection than before is a documented and normal outcome, since the device occupies the space the corpora used to fill on their own. And it is not reversible in the way that matters: placing the cylinders destroys the erectile tissue they sit in. The device can be removed; a natural erection does not come back afterwards.
International patients are quoted roughly $8,100 to $13,500 for an implant in Seoul. That is the highest floor of any procedure on this site, and the reason is that most of it is the prosthesis itself rather than theatre time. An overnight stay for observation is normally inside the quoted figure for this procedure specifically, along with post-operative medication and follow-up. What is not inside it is device revision years later, which is a normal part of owning an inflatable implant rather than a defect. See /pricing/ and, for where that line sits contractually, /recourse/what-we-do-not-cover/.
Foreign-patient prices published on Seoul clinics' English-language sites and on Korean medical-tourism platforms (https://us-uk.bookimed.com/clinics/country=republic-of-korea/), measured 2026-07-28.