Shipbuilding capability has emerged as a key component of sea power in the contemporary strategic competition in the vast Indo-Pacific. Over the past few decades, there have been concerns that the United States (US) is falling behind in the competition, particularly in comparison to China. Meanwhile, US partners in the Indo-Pacific region with strong shipbuilding capabilities, such as South Korea and Japan, have risen as potential providers of shipbuilding capacity. This brief discusses the similarities and differences between the shipbuilding capabilities of South Korea and Japan, and assesses both models in the context of US-China strategic competition.