More than half of Koreans born in the 2000s now call greater Seoul their hometown

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More than half of Koreans born in the 2000s now call greater Seoul their hometown

Published: 04 Dec. 2025, 00:03

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Sohn Hae-yong

The author is the business news editor of the JoongAng Ilbo.

A senior executive at a midsize company, identified as A and now 54, recalled that his high school alumni gatherings have shifted from Busan to Seoul. The reunions usually attract about 10 classmates, split evenly between those living in the greater Seoul area and those who remain in Busan. Because of that balance, they had long met in cities like Daejeon or Cheonan. But the pattern changed. “When we checked where everyone lives now, only two of us were still outside the Seoul region. To keep attendance up, holding it in Seoul made more sense,” he said.

An apartment complex in Seoul is seen from the Seoul Sky observatory at Lotte World Tower in Songpa District on July 3. The heavy concentration of population in Seoul and the surrounding metropolitan area has been a major driver of soaring housing prices. [NEWS1]

His story reflects a structural trend that has been unfolding for decades. In 1970, the greater Seoul area accounted for 28.7 percent of the national population. By last year, it had reached 50.8 percent, a rise of more than 22 percentage points in half a century. Data from the Ministry of Data and Statistics on population movements over the past 20 years show that the migration of young people to the capital region in pursuit of schools and good jobs is accelerating.

The more pressing concern is that this concentration may intensify. Last year, 128,126 babies were born in Seoul, Gyeonggi and Incheon, accounting for 53.8 percent of all births nationwide. The share of newborns from the greater Seoul area first crossed the halfway mark in 2003 and has continued to rise. More than half of Koreans born today are capital-area natives. Cho Young-tae, director of Seoul National University’s Population Policy Research Center, noted that people are psychologically reluctant to leave their hometowns. “At least half of those born in the capital region will stay there. When you combine Korea’s low fertility rate with the outflow from regional areas, population concentration in the capital is bound to deepen,” he said.

The research center projects that by 2050, the capital area could hold as much as 68 percent of the national population. The shift is so pronounced that preserving regional dialects may soon require nationwide campaigns.

This concentration of people and young talent threatens Korea’s long-term prospects. At a job fair in Gwangju in October, a 27-year-old participant told the JoongAng Ilbo that he earns 3.5 million won a month in Seoul. “If I could make 3 million won in Gwangju, I would move back because daily expenses are cheaper,” he said. “But I have yet to find a job here that pays that much.” Among Korea’s top 500 companies, 385 have their headquarters in the capital area, accounting for 77 percent. Young workers from regional areas see their salaries rise by an average of 22.8 percent when they find jobs in the capital region.

The result is a steady outflow of young people to Seoul and the aging of regional communities. As the capital region absorbs more people, housing and infrastructure expand, which in turn attracts more companies and fuels further concentration. This cycle widens socioeconomic divides between the capital and the provinces. Even young workers who secure jobs in Seoul struggle with housing costs and financial pressure, which discourages marriage and childbirth. Korea’s fertility rate is the world’s lowest at 0.75, yet Seoul’s rate drops to 0.58.

Housing instability in the capital area — often cited as the current administration’s biggest risk — is also linked to supply and demand imbalances rooted in population concentration.

Successive governments have promoted balanced regional development, but most attempts have yielded little. As urgency grows, once-sensitive ideas, such as relocating the presidential office and the National Assembly fully to Sejong, or relocating Seoul National University and integrating national universities, are resurfacing as possible options. These proposals face criticism, but supporters say they merit serious consideration.

A commercial area near the former City Hall intersection in Dong District, Gwangju, is seen quiet on June 17, 2024, despite being one of the city’s main business districts. Many regional cities are struggling as young residents continue to leave. [OH HYO-JEONG]

Experts now point to “corporate cities” as the most realistic solution. Toyota City in Japan’s Aichi Prefecture — renamed from Koromo to reflect its automotive identity — is often cited as a model. Oulu in northern Finland, 500 kilometers (311 miles) from Helsinki, became a major IT hub after global firms moved in. In the United States, Austin, Texas, revitalized its economy after attracting Tesla’s headquarters, while Crystal City in Virginia drew Amazon’s second headquarters.

To disperse population, the government must create incentives strong enough to draw companies to the provinces. Facilitating development, streamlining administrative processes, and offering tax support are not enough. Korea needs regulatory exemptions that allow firms to test new technologies without restrictions. Alongside this, tax cuts and improved living infrastructure would help attract skilled workers.

Still, forming many corporate cities across the country would be unrealistic given limited resources. A more practical strategy, experts say, is to concentrate administrative support on two or three regional cities that already have basic industrial and residential foundations.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.