Credit: Public domain.
The rest of South Korea lost nearly a million people to the Seoul 서울 metropolitan area over the past 20 years, according to a Bureau of Statistics 통계청 study released September 17. Between 2004 and 2024, the Seoul metropolitan area (comprising Seoul, Incheon 인천 and Gyeonggi-do Province 경기도) gained 960k in population, while the population decreased in all other regions. The Seoul metropolitan area has contained more than half of South Korea’s population since 2020.
Overall, the Seoul metropolitan area gained young residents and lost middle-aged ones. Over the past two decades, the region has consistently attracted people aged 15-34, and consistently shed residents aged 40-64. The population of Seoul proper has consistently fallen over the past 20 years due to rising housing costs, while the surrounding Gyeonggi-do Province saw the greatest net gain.
