Seoul (Asia & the Pacific)
Population: 23,736,409
GDP: 45,381 USD
Functional Urban Area: 6,680 km2
Seoul
Seoul (Asia & the Pacific)
Population: 23,736,409
GDP: 45,381 USD
Functional Urban Area: 6,680 km2
Context
Seoul, South Korea's capital and a megacity, is governed by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, which oversees 25 autonomous districts (gu), each with its own mayor and council. As a Special City, Seoul operates with broader authority, combining city-level and provincial-level functions to manage urban planning, transportation, and infrastructure. Seoul is at the heart of the Seoul Capital Area, which includes the cities of Incheon and Gyeonggi Province, forming one of the largest metropolitan areas globally, with extensive coordination in transportation and urban planning.
Key findings
Seoul tops Asia-Pacific covered cities in rapid transit accessibility, with 42% of residents living near rapid transit, far exceeding the Asia-Pacific (13%) and overall average (17%). Additionally, 94% of residents have walkable access to public spaces, well-above the regional average of 62%. These achievements highlight Seoul’s leadership in sustainable mobility and urban livability.
Key figures
Indicators at a glance
Explore Seoul’s strengths in:
- Resilience,
- Inclusion,
- Governance and
- Innovation.
Hover Touch to uncover each dimension’s key indicators and scores.
Available Plan/Strategy
Unavailable Plan/Strategy
Quantitative Indicator
Negative value (Lower values are better)
Resilience
- Air quality - NO2: 33.4 µg/m3
- Air quality - PM2.5: 27.2 µg/m3
- CO2 emissions per capita: 2.92 t/person
- Exposure to floods: 10.49 %
- Renewable energy consumption: 3.6 %
- Food security index: No data available
- Greenness: 0.43
- Land Use Efficiency: 1.33
- Urban Heat Island: 1.2 °C
- Waste collection: No data available
- Waste generation: 3,353,985 t
Inclusion
- Rapid transit: 42.36 %
- Public transport accessibility: 70.6 %
- Bike lanes: 18.39 %
- Basic sanitation services: No data available
- Basic water services: No data available
- Women in local politics: 29 %
- Access to education: 83.13 %
- Access to healthcare: 71.79 %
- Public space accessibility: 93.54 %
- Public space availability: 30.64 %
- Gini coefficient: No data available
Governance
- Territorial fragmentation: 0.3
- Selection of local councillors: 100 %
- Mayoral selection: 4
- City budget: No data available
- Own source revenues: No data available
Plans & Strategies
Compare
Seoul
Use the filters to select peer groups of interest and visualize how Seoul compares to other cities across the four urban objectives.