Background: Reference values of triglycerides (TG) to high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) ratio, total cholesterol (TC) to HDL-C ratio, and non-HDL-C concentrations, and their clinical utility have not been fully examined in adolescents. Objectives: We aimed to examine the distribution of TG/HDL-C ratio, TC/HDL-C ratio, and non-HDL-C concentrations in Korean adolescents, and to explore their significance as surrogate markers for metabolic syndrome. Methods: We analyzed data for 2,721 adolescents aged 10-18 years (1,436 boys and 1,285 girls) who participated in the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys from 2008 to 2010. Metabolic syndrome was defined using the International Diabetes Federation criteria. Results: The mean values of TG/HDL-C, TC/HDL, and non-HDL-C were 1.9, 3.3 and 108.6 mg/dL, respectively. TG, TG/HDL-C, and TC/HDL-C were not significantly different by gender, but non-HDL-C levels significantly higher in girls than in boys. TC/HDL-C ratio did not change with age in both genders. Non-HDL-C significantly decreased with age in boys, while age-related difference was not found in girls. TG and TG/HDL-C increased with age in boys, not in girls. Compared with the other lipid parameters, correlation coefficient with waist circumference (WC) was highest for TC/HDL-C, while correlation coefficients with the homeostatic model assessment–insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) were highest for TG and TG/HDL-C. The areas of under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve for predicting metabolic syndrome of TG (0.923), TG/HDL-C (0.947), and TC/HDL-C (0.924) were higher than HOMA-IR (0.822). Optimal cutoffs (sensitivity, specificity) of TG, TG/HDL-C, and TC/HDL-C for identifying adolescents with metabolic syndrome were 145 (82.5% 90.5%), 3.4 (85.0%, 91.0%), and 4.0 (85.0%, 85.6%), respectively. Conclusions: TG/HDL-C and TC/HDL-C ratio, which have minimal age and gender-differences, are useful surrogate markers for metabolic syndrome in Korean adolescents.