By the Numbers
Key indicators from the World Bank reveal how dramatically Asia's cities are changing — from population density to urbanization rates.
People Across 4 Tracked Cities
Tokyo · Seoul · Shanghai · Hong Kong
Hong Kong Population Density
People per km² (urban agglomeration)
Shanghai Urban Population
Largest tracked city agglomeration
Tokyo Population Density
People per km² (Tokyo Metropolis)
Seoul City Population
Seoul Special Metropolitan City
Tokyo Urban Agglomeration
World's largest urban agglomeration
Data sourced from World Bank Open Data · updated every 24 hours
Featured Cities
Real population and urbanization data from the World Bank for Asia's four most tracked economies.
Seoul
South Korea
Seoul's fertility rate of 0.72 — the lowest ever recorded for a major city — does not translate into housing relief. Young professionals continue concentrating in Gangnam and Mapo, keeping the price-to-income ratio at 18x while the broader metro population declines.
Shenzhen
China
Shenzhen's transformation from a 30,000-person fishing village (1979) to a 17-million-person tech megacity represents the fastest urbanization in human history. Its tech-to-GDP share now rivals Silicon Valley, while average wages have grown 400x in real terms.
Tokyo
Japan
Tokyo's 65+ population share of 23.7% is triggering a generational shift in urban policy: silver-economy retail, hospital-adjacent housing, automated care facilities, and downward pressure on school enrollment create compound challenges for city planners.
