This study aimed to investigate Chinese learners’ comprehension of Korean grammatical collocations using a self-paced reading task. The research involved 20 intermediate learners, 20 advanced learners, and 10 native Korean speakers. The findings indicated that intermediate learners experienced greater difficulty with grammatical collocations compared to lexical ones, whereas advanced learners and native speakers achieved higher scores. Analysis of response times revealed weaker lexeme connections among learners, particularly for lexemes following collocations. Furthermore, it was observed that the percentage of correct answers for postposition-like collocations was lower than that for ending-like collocations across the entire learner group, suggesting an influence from the Chinese native language. Finally, advanced learners demonstrated a significantly higher average percentage of correct answers at level 6 compared to levels 1 and 2, with no significant difference observed among intermediate learners. This underscores the importance of focusing on level 1 and level 2 grammatical collocations in instruction. Additionally, the average response time exhibited an upward trend with increasing proficiency levels.