Seoul has ranked No. 15 in a global index of 1,000 cities, climbing 26 spots from No. 41 last year.

The 2025 Global Cities Index, compiled by Oxford Economics, evaluates cities based on five categories: economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance.

New York topped the list, followed by London and Paris in second and third place, respectively, with Tokyo being the only Asian city in the top 10, ranking No. 9.

Out of the five categories, Seoul ranked 5th globally — and highest in Asia — in “human capital” thanks to its strong universities and global firms like Samsung and LG, placed No. 18 in “economy” amid slowing gross domestic product and employment growth, and came in at No. 129 for “quality of life,” No. 147 for “governance” and No. 514 for “environment.”

Other Korean cities in the overall rankings include Busan (No. 281), Jeonju (No. 314), Daegu (No. 321), Cheongju (No. 332) and Daejeon (No. 341).


don@heraldcorp.com