By Berk Kutay Gokmen
ISTANBUL (AA) – Single-person households in the South Korean capital of Seoul have surged to nearly 40% of overall housing, making them the most common household type in the city, the Korea Herald reported Monday, citing a new report from the Seoul Metropolitan Government.
According to the report, approximately 1.66 million people lived alone in Seoul in 2024, up from 1.63 million in 2023. Single-person households now make up nearly 40% of all households.
Two-person households accounted for 26.2% of the total, while four-person households made up only 12.3%, indicating a larger trend toward smaller family units and solo living.
The data also highlights South Korea’s demographic transformation into a "super-aged" society, where the proportion of people aged 65 and older exceeds 20%. As of July, individuals aged 60 and above made up 20.2% of the population in Seoul.
Households that include at least one person aged 65 or older made up more than 30% of total households.
Despite the rising trend of people living on their own, the number of marriages in Seoul rose for the second year in a row.
Although the official number of marriages declined significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic, dropping from 44,746 in 2020 to 35,752 in 2022, marriages rebounded to 36,324 in 2023.
Last year, the figure rose again, to 42,471, representing a 16.9% increase over 2023.