Q1 2026 Seoul Commercial District Vitality and Sales Change Report
Period: 2026년 1분기 · Translated from the Korean original.
Among Seoul's 1,542 commercial districts, the normal type is the most common, with 384 districts, while the declining type has 33. The median year-over-year sales change by type was a 12.2% increase for the growth type, compared with a 9.1% decrease for the declining type.
Key findings
- There are 384 normal districts, 362 stable districts, and 333 growth districts.
- There are 227 rotating hotspots, with a median sales change of 6.6%.
- There are 203 high-risk watch districts, with a median sales change of -3.8%.
- There are 33 declining districts, with a median sales change of -9.1%.
- The median sales change is 12.2% for the growth type, 1.5% for the stable type, and -6.8% for the normal type.
- The district shown with the largest sales decline is Yangcheon Hyanggyo Station Exit 5, at -44.9% year over year.
Analysis
The normal type is the most common
Of the 1,542 commercial districts, the normal type is the most common, with 384 districts. There are 362 stable districts and 333 growth districts, along with 227 rotating hotspot districts, 203 high-risk watch districts, and 33 declining districts.
Sales changes vary by type
The median year-over-year sales change was 12.2% for the growth type, 6.6% for rotating hotspots, and 1.5% for the stable type. The figures were -6.8% for the normal type, -3.8% for high-risk watch districts, and -9.1% for the declining type. The median for each type shows sales trends across a group of districts; it does not represent the outcome for any individual store.
Commercial districts with sales declines shown in the table
Among the rows shown, sales at Yangcheon Hyanggyo Station Exit 5 fell 44.9% year over year, while sales at Hwanghak-dong Kitchen Furniture Street Commercial Area fell 44.5%. Sales at Bon-dong Injeong Market (functionally inactive) fell 43.6%. These districts have different business closure risk scores, opening rates, and closure rates.
Distinguishing rotating hotspots from declining districts
Rotating hotspots are defined as districts in the top 30% for business closure risk that either have an opening rate at or above Seoul's median or rank in the top 25% for sales and have increasing sales. Declining districts are defined as those in the top 30% for business closure risk that have an opening rate below Seoul's median, do not rank in the top 25% for sales, and saw sales decline over the year.
Top rows for commercial districts with year-over-year sales declines
| Commercial district | District | Type | Sales change (year over year) | Opening rate (Q4) | Closure rate (Q4) | Business closure risk score | District change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 양천향교역 5번 | 강서구 | 골목상권 | -44.9% | 1.82% | 2.48% | 56.4 | 다이나믹 |
| 황학동주방가구거리상점가 | 중구 | 전통시장 | -44.5% | 1.94% | 1.82% | 48.7 | 정체 |
| 본동인정시장(기능상실) | 동작구 | 전통시장 | -43.6% | 0% | 3.45% | 62.7 | 정체 |
| 우면주공아파트 | 서초구 | 골목상권 | -26.8% | 1.52% | 2.59% | 51 | 상권확장 |
| 북가좌초등학교 | 서대문구 | 골목상권 | -25.7% | 0.9% | 4.5% | 51.9 | 상권축소 |
| 용두동신동아아파트 | 동대문구 | 골목상권 | -24.9% | 1.06% | 2.48% | 59.2 | 정체 |
| 서울지방병무청 | 영등포구 | 골목상권 | -16.5% | 1.87% | 2.28% | 52.5 | 정체 |
| 남부터미널역 1번 | 서초구 | 골목상권 | -16% | 0.73% | 2.55% | 55.8 | 정체 |
| 오거리공원 | 중랑구 | 골목상권 | -15.5% | 1.35% | 2.62% | 58.3 | 상권축소 |
| 독산동성당 | 금천구 | 골목상권 | -15.1% | 1.96% | 1.88% | 49.4 | 상권축소 |
| 암사역 3번(천호동자전거거리) | 강동구 | 골목상권 | -14.5% | 1.26% | 1.89% | 51.2 | 다이나믹 |
| 평화시장(통일상가, 동화상가) | 중구 | 전통시장 | -14.4% | 0.61% | 1.77% | 70.2 | 정체 |
| 제기동역 6번 | 동대문구 | 골목상권 | -13% | 1.79% | 3.08% | 56.3 | 다이나믹 |
| 까치산역 1번 | 강서구 | 골목상권 | -12.3% | 1.79% | 3.3% | 66.9 | 다이나믹 |
| 장지동주민센터(한림연예예술고교) | 송파구 | 골목상권 | -12.2% | 1.95% | 2.99% | 59.5 | 상권축소 |
| 공군호텔 | 영등포구 | 골목상권 | -10.8% | 1.63% | 1.74% | 51.6 | 상권축소 |
| 세명컴퓨터고등학교 | 은평구 | 골목상권 | -9.1% | 1.96% | 3.04% | 55.7 | 정체 |
| 고덕동성당 | 강동구 | 골목상권 | -9% | 1.78% | 3.01% | 57.6 | 다이나믹 |
| 마장역 2번 | 성동구 | 골목상권 | -7.8% | 0.93% | 2.68% | 55.7 | 정체 |
| 한강성심병원 | 영등포구 | 발달상권 | -6.4% | 1.86% | 2.79% | 49.9 | 정체 |
| 신대방역 4번 | 동작구 | 골목상권 | -6.2% | 1.98% | 2.84% | 64.3 | 상권축소 |
| 배화여자대학교(박노수미술관) | 종로구 | 골목상권 | -5.6% | 1.39% | 1.62% | 52.8 | 다이나믹 |
| 공항시장역 1번 | 강서구 | 골목상권 | -5.2% | 1.77% | 3.08% | 61.4 | 정체 |
| 영등포청과시장교차로 | 영등포구 | 발달상권 | -5.1% | 1.85% | 2.16% | 52.9 | 다이나믹 |
| 개봉1동주민센터 | 구로구 | 골목상권 | -4.1% | 1.5% | 3.31% | 59.7 | 상권축소 |
| 송정체육공원 | 성동구 | 골목상권 | -3.6% | 1.93% | 2.07% | 49.5 | 상권축소 |
| 방학1동주민센터 | 도봉구 | 골목상권 | -2.9% | 1.79% | 3.06% | 50.9 | 다이나믹 |
| 서울남부지방법원 | 양천구 | 발달상권 | -2.8% | 1.67% | 2.15% | 68.6 | 상권축소 |
| 중곡역 3번 | 광진구 | 골목상권 | -2.4% | 1.85% | 2.61% | 63.8 | 상권축소 |
| 숙대입구역 1번 | 용산구 | 골목상권 | -2.3% | 1.88% | 2.89% | 57.9 | 정체 |
| 신당역 3번 | 중구 | 골목상권 | -2.2% | 1.78% | 2.2% | 52.2 | 다이나믹 |
| 난우초등학교 | 관악구 | 골목상권 | -1.7% | 0.77% | 1.54% | 49.8 | 상권축소 |
| 양평역 | 영등포구 | 발달상권 | -1.1% | 0.78% | 2.21% | 57.6 | 상권축소 |
Read with care
- The business closure risk score is a model prediction trained on public data at the commercial district level, and may rise as the number of stores and sales volume increase. It should not be interpreted as the probability that an individual store will close.
- Commercial districts are classified according to the definitions of each type. The median year-over-year sales change by type does not directly represent sales changes in any individual district or store.
- The table presents only the top rows provided, so its examples cannot readily be generalized to the distribution of commercial districts across all of Seoul.
Method & sources
Figures were aggregated by code from the source data; the commentary was written by AI using only these figures.