Births and marriages rise for two consecutive years since 2024 rebound

Seoul tops all 17 cities and provinces in year-on-year growth rates

City credits 'Seoul-style' pro-natalist policies for the turnaround

About 210,000 receive pregnancy transport subsidies; 120,000 get postnatal care support

The number of births in June, the second quarter and the first half of this year all hit seven-year highs. According to the Ministry of Statistics' "June Population Trends" report released Wednesday, 23,111 babies were born in June, up 3,115, or 15.6 percent, from the same month last year. The photo shows a children's goods store at a Seoul department store on Wednesday. [Yonhap]
The number of births in June, the second quarter and the first half of this year all hit seven-year highs. According to the Ministry of Statistics' "June Population Trends" report released Wednesday, 23,111 babies were born in June, up 3,115, or 15.6 percent, from the same month last year. The photo shows a children's goods store at a Seoul department store on Wednesday. [Yonhap]

Seoul recorded the highest growth rates in both births and marriages among all 17 cities and provinces nationwide last year, an outcome the city attributes to its pro-natalist policies.

According to the Ministry of Statistics' "2025 Birth Statistics" released Wednesday, 45,516 babies were born in Seoul last year, up 9.4 percent from the previous year. The total fertility rate — the average number of children a woman is expected to have in her lifetime — rose to 0.63, marking a second consecutive year of recovery after hitting a record low of 0.55 in 2023.

That rebound is gaining momentum this year. The ministry's "June and Second-Quarter 2026 Population Trends" report, also released Wednesday, showed Seoul recorded 26,924 births in the first half of this year, up 18.7 percent from the same period last year. Marriages, a leading indicator of future births, rose for a third consecutive year, with 26,840 unions recorded in the first half — a 10.9 percent increase year on year. Both figures represent the highest growth rates among all 17 cities and provinces in the country.

Behind the shift lies a range of policy efforts the Seoul Metropolitan Government has pursued to address the low birth rate. The city has focused on easing the financial burden of having children and creating an environment more conducive to childbearing.

Two flagship programs stand out: a pregnancy transport subsidy that helps expectant mothers cover commuting costs, and a postnatal care support program to aid mothers' recovery after childbirth. To date, about 210,000 people have received the transport subsidy and about 120,000 have benefited from the postnatal care support. Since March, the city has increased subsidies for second and subsequent children to strengthen benefits for multi-child families.

The city has also provided about 210,000 rounds of fertility treatment support since 2023, when it began phasing out income requirements and per-procedure limits. A housing program called "Mirinae Jip," which gives newlywed couples planning to marry or have children a chance to secure stable housing, has supplied a total of 7,108 units, serving as a reliable residential safety net.

Since 2023, the Seoul Metropolitan Government has also been running a program that opens public facilities as wedding venues. The number of such facilities has grown to 61 this year.

Public attitudes toward childbirth and child-rearing in Seoul are also shifting. A survey by the Seoul Institute found that caregivers' perception of Seoul as a good city to raise children improved from 3.50 out of 5 in 2023 to 3.66 in 2025. The share of respondents who said they intended to have a child within three years also rose year on year — from 68.5 percent to 79.4 percent among childless couples, and from 30.3 percent to 39.9 percent among couples who already have children.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government said it plans to build the structural foundations needed to sustain the current upward trend in births and marriages, ensuring the momentum does not prove temporary.

"To sustain this trend over the long term, we will strengthen support for childbirth, child-rearing and families, and build a comprehensive response system to address the low birth rate," said Ma Chae-suk, head of the city's Women and Family Bureau.


ikson@heraldcorp.com