Living in Seoul

Seoul had 9,579,449 residents in March 2026 across 605.25 km². Households numbered 4,164,385 at the end of 2025, and 609 primary schools were listed for 2025. The city’s annual average temperature was 14.1°C in 2025.

Last checked 2026-10-1015 sources

Population9,579,449people31 Mar 2026Official source · Seoul 100 Statistics

Recorded crime3,237offences per 100,00031 Dec 2024Official source · Korean National Police Agency / Seoul Metropolitan Police / Statistics Korea — 2024 registered crime and population

PM2.5, annual mean17.6µg/m³country median 16.0 — 10% aboveOfficial source · Seoul City time-average air-quality dataset, 2024 hourly file

Which South Korea-wide rules apply when you move to Seoul?

National rules stay on the country page instead of being relabelled as city data.

Visa and entry rulesPassport-specific entry and national residence context.BenefitsCountry-wide eligibility and official application routes.Taxes in South KoreaNational rates and thresholds that apply in Seoul.Healthcare eligibilityCountry-wide insurance and residence conditions.

Housing and cost

July 2026 practical estimates placed basic utilities for an 85 m² home at €143.08 per month and an inexpensive restaurant meal at €7.38. Fixed internet cost €24.16 per month at the provider's published price in October 2026. A mobile plan with at least 10 GB of data cost €39.26 per month at the provider's published price in October 2026. A monthly estimate placed a fitness-club membership at €44.26 in July 2026.

No city-level rent figure is published for Seoul. The available city-level cost figures remain below.

What recurs every month6 published recurring costs, € per month

€ / month

Private kindergarten€1366

Utilities, 85 m² flat€143

Fitness club€44

Transport pass€41

Mobile plan, 10 GB€39

Internet, 60 Mbps€24

Supplemental estimate lane, not official statistics: Utilities, 85 m² flat, Private kindergarten, Fitness club. The others are published prices.

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Fitness club membership, monthly	44.26 EUR/month	31 Jul 2026	Lebenshaltungskosten in Seoul¹⁴Commercial estimate · Supplemental context
Grocery basket, monthly	97.09 EUR/month	3 Aug 2026	Numbeo¹³Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context
Internet, 60 Mbps unlimited	24.16 EUR/month	31 Oct 2026	유플러스 19 요금제 (LG U+ 19 plan)¹²Official · national market
Private kindergarten, monthly	1,366 EUR/month	31 Jul 2026	Lebenshaltungskosten in Seoul¹⁴Commercial estimate · Supplemental context
Meal at an inexpensive restaurant	7.38 EUR	31 Jul 2026	Lebenshaltungskosten in Seoul¹⁴Commercial estimate · Supplemental context
Mobile plan, 10 GB	39.26 EUR/month	31 Oct 2026	Easy L — SK Telecom T world¹Official · national market
Monthly transport pass	40.99 EUR/month	28 Jun 2025	Modes of Transport — Subway fares and commuter pass³Official
Basic utilities, 85 m² home	143.1 EUR/month	31 Jul 2026	Lebenshaltungskosten in Seoul¹⁴Commercial estimate · Supplemental context

Is Seoul a good place to live?

There is no universal answer. The profile scores below show who the available published evidence may suit; they are a decision aid, not a personal recommendation.

Try your profile

Remote worker68%strong on work, weak on air quality · range 58–78%

Skilled employee72%strong on work, weak on safety · range 63–81%

Student59%strong on education, weak on work · range 51–67%

Family54%strong on family, weak on cost · range 45–63%

Retirement50%strong on safety, weak on admin · range 39–61%

Work and income

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Public employment offices	11 count	15 Sept 2026	Work24 — 고용복지+센터 institution finder¹¹Official
Average net monthly salary	2,682 EUR/month	30 Sept 2026	Numbeo city cost-of-living page — /cities/kr/seoul/¹⁴Community estimate · Supplemental context

Public employment offices in Seoul

Work24 lists 11 public employment offices in Seoul (checked 2026-09-16). Use the official office finder for addresses and appointments; registration and job search are also available online through the national service below.

Office count verified

Work24 public employment service — Public employment service

Ministry of Employment and Labor, Republic of Korea

Job Search

Search jobs

Open the South Korea service overview

The office count comes from the service's own directory. Individual addresses and opening hours are not listed here yet. Sources checked through 16 Sept 2026.

Family and education

A monthly estimate placed private kindergarten fees at €1,366 in July 2026.

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Public language course providers	1 count	10 Aug 2026	Official accepted language-service location records⁴Official
Primary schools	609 schools	31 Dec 2025	Seoul 100 Statistics⁷Official

Safety

In 2024, the city had 302,174 crime incidents.

How safe is Seoul?

Police recorded about 3,237 incidents per 100,000 (2024). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source.

Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents: 3,237 offences per 100,000 · Korean National Police Agency / Seoul Metropolitan Police / Statistics Korea — 2024 registered crime and population⁷

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Recorded incidents per 100,000 residents	3,237 offences per 100,000	31 Dec 2024	Korean National Police Agency / Seoul Metropolitan Police / Statistics Korea — 2024 registered crime and population⁷Official
Total recorded incidents	302,174 incidents	31 Dec 2024	Seoul 100 Statistics⁷Official
Violent crime per 100,000 residents	61.66 incidents per 100,000	31 Dec 2024	KR-Police-regional-crime-2024²Official

Mobility and administration

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Destinations from nearest airport	13 count	3 Aug 2026	OpenFlights⁵Official
Nearest airport	GMP	3 Aug 2026	OurAirports⁶Official
Distance to nearest airport	17 km	3 Aug 2026	OurAirports⁶Official
Public transport monthly pass	37.66 EUR/month	3 Aug 2026	Numbeo¹³Supplemental estimate · Supplemental context

Language courses and integration in Seoul

1 exact course-location record is linked to this city. Check the linked source for dates, availability and enrolment.

Verified locally

1verified local records

1publicly funded course provider

Seoul Metropolitan Government Foreign Resident Centers

40 Dosin-ro, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul

View official record

Check courses in Seoul How the country programme works

Exact city-linked record checked 2026-08-10. Provider-supplied records are supplemental and are not presented as official accreditation.

Find courses near Seoul

Climate and air quality

Monthly mean temperature moved from −2°C in January to 26.1°C in August. The average August high was 30°C, while July precipitation was 414.4 mm. Annual PM2.5 was 25.4 µg/m³ in 2019. Monthly minimum temperatures ranged from −5.5°C in January to 22.9°C in August.

Is the air quality good in Seoul?

The annual PM2.5 mean is 17.6 µg/m³ (2024) — above the WHO 2021 guideline of 5 µg/m³ but within the EU limit of 25 µg/m³. Source: Seoul City time-average air-quality dataset, 2024 hourly file⁸

Annual mean at the measuring site(s) serving the city; current-day readings differ.

Temperature through the yearAverage daytime high and night-time low, °C

0°

2°-6°

5°-3°

11°2°

18°8°

24°14°

28°19°

29°22°

30°23°

26°18°

20°11°

12°4°

4°-3°

JFMAMJJASOND

Night-time low to daytime high

Rainfall through the yearAverage monthly precipitation, mm

104

130

414

348

142

JFMAMJJASOND

Sunshine through the yearAverage monthly sunshine, hours

170

171

198

206

223

189

124

156

180

207

157

163

JFMAMJJASOND

hours

Air quality vs health guidelinesAnnual means against WHO 2021 guidelines and EU legal limits

Within WHO 2021 guidelineAbove WHO, within EU limitAbove EU legal limitCity annual mean · µg/m³

PM2.517.6WHO 5 · EU 25

City values from the published air-quality observations. WHO 2021 guidelines and EU limit values are published constants.

PM2.5 across cities in South KoreaAnnual PM2.5 in Seoul is 17.6 µg/m³. Of 235 cities with data, 47 have annual PM2.5 of 17 to under 18 µg/m³.

9–1010–1111–1212–1313–1414–1515–1616–1717–1818–1919–2020–2121–2222–23

Seoul 17.6

Annual PM2.5 (µg/m³)

Metric	Value	Period	Source
PM2.5 — annual mean	17.6 µg/m³country median 16.0	31 Dec 2024	Seoul City time-average air-quality dataset, 2024 hourly file⁸Official
Average daytime high by month	Jan 2.1 · Feb 5.1 · Mar 11 · Apr 17.9 · May 23.6 · Jun 27.6 · Jul 29 · Aug 30 · Sep 26.2 · Oct 20.2 · Nov 11.9 · Dec 4.2 °C	1991–2020	WMO Climatological Normals 1991-2020 station CSV¹⁵Independent
Average night-time low by month	Jan -5.5 · Feb -3.2 · Mar 1.9 · Apr 8 · May 13.5 · Jun 18.7 · Jul 22.3 · Aug 22.9 · Sep 17.7 · Oct 10.6 · Nov 3.5 · Dec -3.4 °C	1991–2020	WMO Climatological Normals 1991-2020 station CSV¹⁵Independent
Average temperature by month	Jan -2 · Feb 0.7 · Mar 6.1 · Apr 12.6 · May 18.3 · Jun 22.7 · Jul 25.3 · Aug 26.1 · Sep 21.7 · Oct 15 · Nov 7.5 · Dec 0.2 °C	1991–2020	WMO Climatological Normals 1991-2020 station CSV¹⁵Independent
Average precipitation by month	Jan 16.8 · Feb 28.2 · Mar 36.9 · Apr 72.9 · May 103.6 · Jun 129.5 · Jul 414.4 · Aug 348.2 · Sep 141.5 · Oct 52.2 · Nov 51.1 · Dec 22.6 mm	1991–2020	WMO Climatological Normals 1991-2020 station CSV¹⁵Independent
Average sunshine by month	Jan 169.6 · Feb 170.8 · Mar 198.2 · Apr 206.3 · May 223 · Jun 189.1 · Jul 123.6 · Aug 156.1 · Sep 179.7 · Oct 206.5 · Nov 157.3 · Dec 162.9 hours	1991–2020	WMO Climatological Normals 1991-2020 station CSV¹⁵Independent
Annual mean temperature	14.1 °C	31 Dec 2025	Seoul 100 Statistics⁷Official

Population and city profile

How many people live in Seoul?

The published population was 9,579,449 people in March 2026. Source: Seoul 100 Statistics⁷

Foreign residents and their share come from different publications that count different groups (for example citizens of another country, or people born abroad, or of foreign origin), so 275,049 is not 4% of the population. Each row names its source.

Who lives hereResidents by nationality, % of population

By nationality

National passport97.1%

Calculated from the population and foreign-resident facts on this page.

Metric	Value	Period	Source
City area	605.3 km²	31 Dec 2025	Seoul 100 Statistics⁷Official
Foreign-resident share	3.96 %	31 Dec 2025	Statistics Korea (KOSIS)⁹Official
Foreign residents	275,049 people	31 Mar 2026	Seoul 100 Statistics⁷Official
Population	9,579,449 people	31 Mar 2026	Seoul 100 Statistics⁷Official

Population over time16 published observations, 2011–2026

9,240,297

9,601,681

9,963,064

10,324,448

9,579,4492011201520212026

Population fell 6.5% between 2011 and 2026, from 10,249,679 to 9,579,449.

International community in Seoul

Named groups from exact city-grain official distributions. Citizenship, birthplace, language and ancestry answer different questions and stay separate.

Citizenship

Persons recorded in the official KOSIS registered-foreigner population table; this is not the total resident population and is not interchangeable with resident citizenship. · 2025

Published group	People	Share
Ethnic Koreans from China	67,868	24.3%
China	67,780	24.2%
Vietnam	31,324	11.2%
Mongolia	12,402	4.4%
United States	11,641	4.2%

Largest published groups; zero-count groups are omitted. Dimensions are source-native and are never merged. Official source¹⁰

Additional context

Metric	Value	Period	Source
Households	4,164,385 households	31 Dec 2025	Seoul 100 Statistics⁷Official

Alternatives for people set on Seoul

Nothing here reaches an argued comparison yet: no other published city shares enough metrics with Seoul from the same source, period and grain. What is collected is below.

Alternative cities in South Korea

Other cities in South Korea to compare with Seoul, nearest in population first.

All South Korea cities

Suwon-si1,185,770 residents Yongin-si1,090,211 residents Goyang-si1,057,438 residents Hwaseong-si998,746 residents Changwon-si986,273 residents Seongnam-si902,344 residents

How does Seoul compare?

Pick a city. The answer appears here and the address bar keeps it, so the comparison can be shared; the page stays Seoul's.

Open the full comparison

Seoul in rankings

#1 of 30 in Largest cities in South Korea #1 of 30 in South Korean cities with the largest foreign populations #2 of 30 in Largest cities in ImmigrationDB #28 of 30 in Cities with the largest foreign populations

Yes — migrants can receive medical care in Seoul under the national coverage rules.

Healthcare access follows the country-wide insurance rules; local capacity facts remain city data and are not used as proof of eligibility.

Open the official coverage guide

Country rule verified 2026-08-03.

Common questions

Answered from the published values on this page, each with its source and date.

How many people live in Seoul?

The published population was 9,579,449 people in March 2026. Source: Seoul 100 Statistics.

Is the air quality good in Seoul?

How safe is Seoul?

Police recorded about 3,237 incidents per 100,000 (2024). This counts all offences, so it is not comparable with a violent-crime-only rate from another source. Source: Korean National Police Agency / Seoul Metropolitan Police / Statistics Korea — 2024 registered crime and population.

How many foreign residents live in Seoul?

275,049 residents hold a foreign nationality. Source: Seoul 100 Statistics.

How much is public transport in Seoul?

A monthly transport pass is 40.99 EUR/month. Source: Modes of Transport — Subway fares and commuter pass.

Is Seoul a good place to live?

Seoul may suit different people for different reasons. The page's profile scores compare published cost, work, housing, safety, healthcare and other available factors; they are a decision aid, not a universal recommendation.

How many people are in the Ethnic Koreans from China citizenship group in Seoul?

The official citizenship distribution records 67,868 people (24.3%) in the source-defined population for 2025. This is a citizenship measure, not a general estimate of ethnicity or migration status.

Cite this page

Open a format to select or copy this ImmigrationDB compilation citation. The native disclosure and text fallback work without JavaScript.

APA citation

ImmigrationDB. (2026, October 16). Seoul, South Korea: population, rent, salary, cost of living [ImmigrationDB compilation; version 393618834ca8d83d36b767a6fa15541b]. ImmigrationDB. https://immigrationdb.com/cities/kr/seoul/ Retrieved 2026-10-16. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

BibTeX citation

@misc{immigrationdb_immigrationdb_seoul-south-korea-population-rent-salary-cost-of-living_adfa776ecc4d,
  author = {ImmigrationDB},
  title = {Seoul, South Korea: population, rent, salary, cost of living},
  publisher = {ImmigrationDB},
  year = {2026},
  date = {2026-10-16},
  version = {393618834ca8d83d36b767a6fa15541b},
  url = {https://immigrationdb.com/cities/kr/seoul/},
  note = {Retrieved 2026-10-16. ImmigrationDB compilation. Compilation license: CC BY 4.0, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/},
}

Markdown citation

[Seoul, South Korea: population, rent, salary, cost of living](https://immigrationdb.com/cities/kr/seoul/) — ImmigrationDB; ImmigrationDB; version 393618834ca8d83d36b767a6fa15541b; retrieved 2026-10-16; built 2026-10-16.

This citation identifies the ImmigrationDB compilation/page. Underlying source publishers and datasets retain their own terms; inspect the Sources section and cite those records separately. View the underlying source records.

Sources

JSON Markdown

Easy L — SK Telecom T world Easy L · m.tworld.co.kr · checked 2026-10-09
KR-Police-regional-crime-2024 data.go.kr · checked 2026-09-15
Modes of Transport — Subway fares and commuter pass Modes of Transport · english.seoul.go.kr · checked 2026-10-09
Official accepted language-service location records global.seoul.go.kr · checked 2026-09-15
OpenFlights raw.githubusercontent.com · checked 2026-08-03
OurAirports davidmegginson.github.io · checked 2026-08-03
Seoul 100 Statistics data.seoul.go.kr · checked 2026-07-22
Seoul City time-average air-quality dataset, 2024 hourly file data.seoul.go.kr · checked 2026-10-04
Statistics Korea (KOSIS) kosis.kr · checked 2026-08-03
Statistics Korea / KOSIS citizenship distribution kosis.kr · checked 2026-08-28

Show 5 more sources

Work24 — 고용복지+센터 institution finder Work24 · work24.go.kr · checked 2026-09-15
유플러스 19 요금제 (LG U+ 19 plan) lguplus.com · checked 2026-10-09
Numbeo numbeo.com · checked 2026-08-03
Numbeo city cost-of-living page — /cities/kr/seoul/ Numbeo city cost-of-living page · de.numbeo.com · checked 2026-09-05
WMO Climatological Normals 1991-2020 station CSV ncei.noaa.gov · checked 2026-07-26

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