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Seoul Medical Center — Seoul, South Korea
SM

Seoul Medical Center

KR Seoul, South Korea · multi-specialty

71/100 A Grade

Trust Index 78 · Strong

World's Best Hospitals 2026 #73 in South
How this score is built
Accreditation 30% 84
Clinical outcomes 25% 88
Reputation 20% 61
Transparency 10% 83
Track record 10% 76
Reviews 5% 60

75% of the score is objective and verifiable; the same public formula applies to every clinic.

Photo: hyolee2 / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0
#73 in South — World's Best Hospitals 2026 from $21 3.6★ KOIHA 의료기관인증 (Korea Institute for Healthcare Accreditation, 급성기병원 인증 — acute-care hospital accreditation)

Every price shows its source and verification; Price data last updated .

Sourced facts KOIHA 의료기관인증 (Korea Institute for Healthcare Accreditation, 급성기병원 인증 — acute-care hospital accreditation) · Directory-verified via 소비자24 (Korea Consumer Agency public registry, consumer.go.kr) — certificate no. 4-342, institution type 종합병원 (general hospital), accreditation type 급성기 (acute-care), status '인증' (certified/active), validity 2026-06-29 to 2030-06-28 (currently valid, cycle just renewed). The registry entry cites 의료기관평가인증원 (KOIHA) as the issuing body and independently lists licensed bed count 651 and phone 02-2276-7000, both matching the hospital's own site.

Seoul Medical Center (서울특별시 서울의료원) is a public general hospital in Sinnae-dong, Jungnang-gu, Seoul, wholly established and operated by the Seoul Metropolitan Government as an independent regional public medical corporation (지방의료원) — one of eight hospitals the city runs directly, distinct from Seoul's university hospitals (e.g. SNUH) and from the nationally-run National Medical Center. Its institutional lineage traces to 순화병원 (1911, Seoul's first municipal hospital) via 시립중부병원, then reopened in 1977 as 시립강남병원 in Gangnam-gu Samseong-dong, renamed 지방공사 강남병원 (1982-2004) and 서울의료원 (2004-2006), taking its current name 서울특별시 서울의료원 in 2006. It relocated to its current purpose-built Jungnang-gu campus in May 2011 and now runs 9 specialized centers and roughly 25 clinical departments per its own 2024 annual report, licensed for 651 beds (per the KOIHA/소비자24 registry). It played a prominent public-health role during the 2015 MERS outbreak (second-highest patient load nationally) and the COVID-19 pandemic (treated an estimated ~24% of Seoul's confirmed cases in 2020), and was designated a Regional Emergency Medical Center (2022) and Regional Psychiatric Emergency Medical Center (2022). It holds a current KOIHA acute-care hospital accreditation (cert. 4-342, valid 2026-2030, directory-verified via 소비자24). Its Fertility Center (가임센터) is an active named specialty service running dedicated Saturday clinic hours, and its Health Promotion Center runs an NHIS-designated comprehensive health-screening program (base tier ₩360,000 male / ₩400,000 female).

Verified against: Seoul Medical Center — official site homepage · Seoul Medical Center — 2024 Annual Report, 병원소개 (institutional history) · Seoul Medical Center — 2024 Annual Report, 주요현황 (organizational structure) · Seoul Medical Center — 2024 Annual Report, 주요통계 (2022-2024 patient statistics by department) · Seoul Medical Center — 비급여항목안내 (mandated non-covered fee disclosure) · Seoul Medical Center — 건강증진센터 (Health Promotion Center) checkup programs · Seoul Medical Center — hospital department directory API (live JSON feed) · 소비자24 (Korea Consumer Agency) — 의료기관인증 registry entry, 서울특별시 서울의료원 (KOIHA accreditation, cert. 4-342) · Korean Wikipedia — 서울의료원 (corroboration: founding lineage, bed count, relocation history) · OpenStreetMap Nominatim geocode — 서울특별시 서울의료원 · commons.wikimedia.org · rankings.newsweek.com · google.com

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Patient rating
3.6/5
129 Google reviews
Trust Index
78/100
Strong
Data confidence
51%
Partial · 31% verified
Founded
1977
49 yrs
Published prices
6
from $21
Specialties
5
departments

Medical Travel Cost Hospital Index

MHI · Method 1.3 Methodology →

One comparable score per hospital — each metric below is measured against the registry and weighted by the same public formula. Unsourced metrics are excluded, never guessed.

71
A
Newsweek World's Best #73 in South Korea

100% of the formula backed by data

  • Trust Index 78 Our index 78/100 · vs 137 same-country hospitals · 100th percentile
  • Profile completeness 51 Our index 51% · share of our profile verified vs modeled — informational, not scored
  • Quality & reputation 65 ✓ Verified #73 in country (Newsweek/US-News) · 3.6★ Google · objective outcomes ≫ independent ranking ≫ patient reviews · 85th percentile
  • Accreditation 63 ✓ Verified 1 independent · current JCI ≫ independent bodies (Magnet/CAP/DNV) ≫ historical/on-record
  • Price transparency 60 Imported 6 published · separate pricing axis — informational, not scored in the quality grade
  • Scale 81 ✓ Verified 651 beds · vs 84 sourced hospitals in the registry · 62th percentile

The composite is the weight-normalized mean of available metrics. The same method applies to every hospital in the registry. Machine-readable version below for models & crawlers.

Prices by field

Imported — unverified

The hospital's published procedure prices, grouped by field — open any row to see what's in the price. Room rates and packages are listed separately below.

Fertility & IVF 2 prices
ICSI Treatment ₩639,330–₩639,330 · from $428 Directory data unverified
What's in the price · all-in ≈ $428 Full page →
  • Surgeon & operating room$107
  • Anesthesia$21
  • Hospital stay (5 nights)$193
  • Implants & materials$67
  • Post-op & follow-up$40

Hospital stay ≈ $169/night · 5 nights

Included

  • Surgeon, anesthesia & OR fees
  • 5 nights' hospital stay
  • Standard implants & materials
  • Nursing, meals & standard follow-up

Budget on top

  • + Flights & airport transfer
  • + Hotel before/after admission
  • + Visa & travel insurance
  • + Take-home medications
  • + Physiotherapy / rehab
  • + Extended stay if complications arise
IVF Treatment ₩1,541,110–₩1,541,110 · from $1,030 Directory data unverified
What's in the price · all-in ≈ $1,030 Full page →
  • Surgeon & operating room$258
  • Anesthesia$52
  • Hospital stay (14 nights)$465
  • Implants & materials$161
  • Post-op & follow-up$97

Hospital stay ≈ $169/night · 14 nights

Included

  • Surgeon, anesthesia & OR fees
  • 14 nights' hospital stay
  • Standard implants & materials
  • Nursing, meals & standard follow-up

Budget on top

  • + Flights & airport transfer
  • + Hotel before/after admission
  • + Visa & travel insurance
  • + Take-home medications
  • + Physiotherapy / rehab
  • + Extended stay if complications arise
Orthopedics 1 price
Manual Therapy ₩31,000–₩31,000 · from $21 Directory data unverified
What's in the price · all-in ≈ $21 Full page →
  • Surgeon & operating room$4
  • Anesthesia$2
  • Hospital stay (5 nights)$9
  • Implants & materials$5
  • Post-op & follow-up$1

Hospital stay ≈ $169/night · 5 nights

Included

  • Surgeon, anesthesia & OR fees
  • 5 nights' hospital stay
  • Standard implants & materials
  • Nursing, meals & standard follow-up

Budget on top

  • + Flights & airport transfer
  • + Hotel before/after admission
  • + Visa & travel insurance
  • + Take-home medications
  • + Physiotherapy / rehab
  • + Extended stay if complications arise
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) ₩620,000–₩620,000 · from $415 Directory data unverified
What's in the price · all-in ≈ $415 Full page →
  • Surgeon & operating room$102
  • Anesthesia$25
  • Hospital stay (5 nights)$187
  • Implants & materials$63
  • Post-op & follow-up$38

Hospital stay ≈ $169/night · 5 nights

Included

  • Surgeon, anesthesia & OR fees
  • 5 nights' hospital stay
  • Standard implants & materials
  • Nursing, meals & standard follow-up

Budget on top

  • + Flights & airport transfer
  • + Hotel before/after admission
  • + Visa & travel insurance
  • + Take-home medications
  • + Physiotherapy / rehab
  • + Extended stay if complications arise
Show all 5 fields Show less
Cataract Surgery ₩2,203,640–₩2,203,640 · from $1,480 Directory data unverified
What's in the price · all-in ≈ $1,480 Full page →
  • Surgeon & operating room$415
  • Anesthesia$74
  • Hospital stay (5 nights)$664
  • Implants & materials$231
  • Post-op & follow-up$92

Hospital stay ≈ $169/night · 5 nights

Included

  • Surgeon, anesthesia & OR fees
  • 5 nights' hospital stay
  • Standard implants & materials
  • Nursing, meals & standard follow-up

Budget on top

  • + Flights & airport transfer
  • + Hotel before/after admission
  • + Visa & travel insurance
  • + Take-home medications
  • + Physiotherapy / rehab
  • + Extended stay if complications arise
General & other 1 price
Comprehensive Health Screening ₩360,000–₩400,000 · from $241 Directory data unverified
What's in the price · all-in ≈ $241 Full page →
  • Surgeon & operating room$63
  • Anesthesia$19
  • Hospital stay (5 nights)$109
  • Implants & materials$31
  • Post-op & follow-up$19

Hospital stay ≈ $169/night · 5 nights

Included

  • Surgeon, anesthesia & OR fees
  • 5 nights' hospital stay
  • Standard implants & materials
  • Nursing, meals & standard follow-up

Budget on top

  • + Flights & airport transfer
  • + Hotel before/after admission
  • + Visa & travel insurance
  • + Take-home medications
  • + Physiotherapy / rehab
  • + Extended stay if complications arise

Prices are the hospital's published ranges (unverified imports are labelled). The line-item split inside each row is modeled from typical cost structures for this preview — the total is the published price and the hospital-stay line uses the real room rate where known. Actual quotes vary by case & surgeon.

Location & getting here

Verified 2026-07-14

Address, neighbourhood, and how long transit and airports take.

156 Sinnae-ro, Sinnae-dong, Jungnang-gu, Seoul 02053, South Korea (서울특별시 중랑구 신내로 156)

Jungnang-gu (Sinnae-dong) · Seoul, South Korea

Getting here

  • Sinnae 0.5 km · ~6 min (≈, OSM)
  • Bonghwasan 0.7 km · ~9 min (≈, OSM)

Patient reviews

✓ Google · verified

Google's published rating, put in context against how hospitals actually score.

3.6 / 5

129 Google reviews

Excellent for a hospital

Top 15%

better than ~85% of hospitals

A hospital's stars run far lower than shops or restaurants — reviews are written amid illness, big bills and stress, and unhappy patients review the most. The average hospital scores just 2.85★ on Google, so This hospital's 3.6★ sits near the top of the range.

Typical hospital2.85★
This hospital3.6★
worst hospital 1.4★best 4.6★

Rating is Google's, shown as reported (129 reviews). The "top %" is an estimate from peer-reviewed hospital-rating studies (Canadian nationwide 2018–19, n=167, mean 2.85★; US hospitals, median 3.0★) — we score against the hospital distribution, not the naive 0–5 scale.

Patients rate Seoul Medical Center 3.6★ across 129 Google reviews — excellent for a hospital, better than roughly 85% of hospitals on our worldwide rating benchmark.

Doctors, nurses & expertise

Sourced

The hospital's published headcount and capacity.

Beds
651
sourced

From the hospital's published figures. Nurse counts and training ratios will appear once sourced.

Accreditations

Independently verifiable

Only independent, checkable accreditations and rankings — published by the accrediting bodies themselves. Self-reported trade awards are deliberately omitted.

KOIHA 의료기관인증 (급성기)

의료기관평가인증원 (Korea Institute for Healthcare Accreditation), via 소비자24 public registry

Certificate 4-342, status 인증 (certified), valid 2026-06-29~2030-06-28. Registry record: 의료기관종류 종합병원, 대표전화번호 02-2276-7000, 병원소재지 서울특별시 중랑구 신내로 156 — all cross-matching the hospital's own published contact details, corroborating entity identity independently of the hospital's own site.

World's Best Hospitals 2026

Newsweek / Statista

#73 in South Korea (listed as "Seoul Medical Center")

Independent signals

Sourced

Government quality-inspection grades, independent accreditation/certification, and insurer networks — matched from public registries, not submitted by the hospital.

Government quality grade

  • HIRA HIRA 적정성평가 — 급성심근경색증 (Acute Myocardial Infarction) care quality: 5등급 as of 2026 Source →
  • HIRA HIRA 적정성평가 — 대장암 수술 (Colon Cancer surgery) quality: 3등급 as of 2026 Source →
  • HIRA HIRA 적정성평가 — 난임시술 의료기관 (Infertility/IVF treatment) indicator: 인공수정지표 1등급, 체외수정지표 1등급 as of 2026 Source →
  • HIRA HIRA 적정성평가 — 환자경험평가 (Inpatient Experience Survey) domain scores: 간호사영역:87.04; 의사영역:81.68; 투약 및 치료과정:84.23; 병원환경:86.63; 환자권리보장:81.28; 전반적 평가:86.18 as of 2026 Source →

Ownership & governance

Sourced

Who owns it and how long it's operated — from public records.

Corporate

Ownership
Public · Seoul Metropolitan City — an independent local public medical corporation (지방의료원) wholly established and operated by 서울시 under the Public Health and Medical Services Act and the Act on the Establishment and Operation of Regional Medical Centers; not affiliated with any university or private hospital group. Distinct from, but administratively a sibling of, seven other Seoul Metropolitan City-run hospitals (동부·서남·북부·서북·은평·어린이·장애인치과병원) and SMG-SNU Boramae Medical Center, all separately listed on this hospital's own site footer as distinct institutions.
Established
1977 · 49 yrs

From public corporate records. Complaint rates and ethics signals will appear once independently sourced.

Conditions treated here

This hospital

Seoul Medical Center treats 67 conditions across 4 fields. What it covers — tap a field for this hospital's own prices.

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) · Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) · Basal cell carcinoma · Bladder Cancer · Brain tumor · Breast cancer · Cervical cancer · Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) · Chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) · Colon cancer · Cutaneous lymphoma · Endometrial cancer · Esophageal cancer · Gastric cancer · Head and Neck Cancer · Hepatocellular carcinoma · Hodgkin Lymphoma · Kidney Cancer (Renal Cell Carcinoma) · Leukemia · Lung cancer · Lymphoma · Melanoma · Multiple myeloma · Oral cancer · Ovarian cancer · Pancreatic cancer · Prostate cancer · Rectal Cancer · Soft Tissue Sarcoma · Squamous cell carcinoma · Testicular cancer · Thyroid Cancer

Achilles Tendinitis · ACL Injury (Torn Knee Ligament) · Bunion (Hallux Valgus) · Carpal tunnel syndrome · Frozen Shoulder (Adhesive Capsulitis) · Gout · Osteoarthritis · Osteoporosis · Plantar Fasciitis · Rheumatoid arthritis · Sciatica · Scoliosis · Spinal cord injury · Spinal stenosis · Temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ) · Tennis Elbow (Lateral Epicondylitis)

Age-Related Macular Degeneration · Cataracts · Diabetic Retinopathy · Dry Eye Disease · Glaucoma · Keratoconus · Pterygium (Surfer's Eye) · Ptosis (Drooping Eyelid) · Refractive Error (Myopia, Astigmatism) · Retinal detachment · Strabismus (Crossed Eyes)

Show all 4 fields Show less

Endometriosis · Infertility (female) · Infertility (male) · Menopause · Ovarian cysts · Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) · Recurrent Miscarriage · Uterine Fibroids

A directory of fields this hospital covers — not a claim it treats every case. Suitability is confirmed with the specialist.

Specialists & departments

This hospital

5 specialties across 5 fields. Tap a field for this hospital's prices.

Doctor types, never named individuals.

Compare hospitals in South Korea

Our index

Side by side on what actually decides the choice — our grade, the Newsweek ranking, patient reviews, accreditation, and real verified prices. Best in each row marked ★.

Compared with 3 other South Korea hospitals here, Seoul Medical Center carries a B grade (#73 in South — World's Best Hospitals 2026), ranks #4 of 4 on our merit score (69).

Metric This hospital Seoul Medical Center Seoul Samsung Medical Center Seoul Asan Medical Center Seoul Severance Hospital (Yonsei University) Seoul
Hospital gradeNewsweek in-country rank where ranked, else our merit score B · 69 AAA · 93 AA · 91 AA · 87
Newsweek rankWorld's Best Hospitals #73 in country #1 in country #2 in country #3 in country
Patient ratingGoogle, sourced 3.6★ 3.9★ 4.0★ 3.8★
Accreditationindependent bodies JCI JCI JCI JCI
Published pricesverified, comparable 6 verified 7 verified 2 verified
From pricecheapest verified $94 $154 $409
Profile You're here Open profile Open profile Open profile

Six decision metrics on the same public formula — our grade, the Newsweek ranking, patient reviews, accreditation and real verified prices. "—" means not yet sourced, never guessed. Best in each row marked ★. All hospitals →

Common questions about Seoul Medical Center

Straight answers from the data on this page — cost, accreditation, rating, and location.

How much does treatment at Seoul Medical Center cost?

Seoul Medical Center publishes prices for 6 procedures, starting from about $21. The exact cost depends on the procedure and your case — priced fields include fertility & ivf, orthopedics, cancer treatment (oncology). Every price on this page links to its source and shows whether it is verified.

Is Seoul Medical Center accredited?

Yes — Seoul Medical Center holds KOIHA 의료기관인증 (급성기). We list only independent, checkable accreditations published by the accrediting bodies themselves; self-reported trade or marketing awards are excluded.

How is Seoul Medical Center rated?

Seoul Medical Center has a 3.6-star Google rating from 129 reviews, and scores 71/100 (grade A) on our independent Trust Index, alongside its rank of #73 in South — World's Best Hospitals 2026. The Trust Index is one public formula applied to every hospital — the

What is Seoul Medical Center known for?

Seoul Medical Center (서울특별시 서울의료원) is a public general hospital in Sinnae-dong, Jungnang-gu, Seoul, wholly established and operated by the Seoul Metropolitan Government as an independent regional public medical corporation (지방의료원) — one of eight hospitals the city runs directly, distinct from Seoul's university hospitals (e.g. SNUH) and from the nationally-run National Medical Center. Its institutional lineage traces to 순화병원 (1911, Seoul's first municipal hospital) via 시립중부병원, then reopened in 1977 as 시립강남병원 in Gangnam-gu Samseong-dong, renamed 지방공사 강남병원 (1982-2004) and 서울의료원 (2004-2006), taking its current name 서울특별시 서울의료원 in 2006. It relocated to its current purpose-built Jungnang-gu campus in May 2011 and now runs 9 specialized centers and roughly 25 clinical departments per its own 2024 annual report, licensed for 651 beds (per the KOIHA/소비자24 registry). It played a prominent public-health role during the 2015 MERS outbreak (second-highest patient load nationally) and the COVID-19 pandemic (treated an estimated ~24% of Seoul's confirmed cases in 2020), and was designated a Regional Emergency Medical Center (2022) and Regional Psychiatric Emergency Medical Center (2022). It holds a current KOIHA acute-care hospital accreditation (cert. 4-342, valid 2026-2030, directory-verified via 소비자24). Its Fertility Center (가임센터) is an active named specialty service running dedicated Saturday clinic hours, and its Health Promotion Center runs an NHIS-designated comprehensive health-screening program (base tier ₩360,000 male / ₩400,000 female).

Where is Seoul Medical Center?

Seoul Medical Center is located at 156 Sinnae-ro, Sinnae-dong, Jungnang-gu, Seoul 02053, South Korea (서울특별시 중랑구 신내로 156), Jungnang-gu (Sinnae-dong), Seoul, South Korea.

Traveling to Seoul, South Korea

Sourced Full South Korea guide →

South Korea crossed the 1-million mark as a medical-travel destination for the first time in 2024: about 1.17 million foreign patients were treated, up 93.2% from 610,000 in 2023 (Ministry of Health and Welfare / KHIDI). The largest patient groups came from Japan, China, the United States, Thailand and Taiwan, and the most-used specialties were dermatology, plastic surgery, internal/general medicine and health screening. Seoul concentrates most volume, drawing patients for aesthetic and dermatologic care, health check-ups, oncology and advanced surgery delivered in JCI-accredited hospitals with dedicated international-patient centers — at prices below the US while the government regulates and publishes standards through KHIDI's Medical Korea program.

Visa
Most Western nationalities (US, UK, EU/Schengen, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Japan) enter visa-free for short medical or tourist visits. The K-ETA (electronic travel authorization) requirement is temporarily WAIVED for 67 countries and territories through 31 December 2026 — eligible travellers enter without applying for a K-ETA; the requirement is expected to resume 1 January 2027. Confirm your nationality's current rule before travelling.
Medical / long-stay visa
For treatment, foreign patients typically use the C-3-3 medical tourism visa (short-term, stays up to 90 days, generally not extendable beyond 90 days except in special circumstances). For treatment or recovery longer than 90 days, patients change to or apply for the G-1-10 long-term medical treatment visa, which can be extended inside Korea; it requires hospital documentation (medical opinion, treatment schedule, payment records). Applications must be tied to a medical institution registered with KTO/KHIDI.
Arrival
From 1 January 2026, all foreign arrivals must file the mandatory digital e-Arrival Card online (within 3 days before arrival) — it replaces the paper disembarkation card and is a declaration, not a visa. Travellers who hold an approved K-ETA are exempt from the arrival card, but nationals of K-ETA-waived countries (US, UK, EU, Japan, etc.) must still complete the e-Arrival Card.
Currency
South Korean Won (KRW, ₩)
Languages
Korean; English widely spoken in international-patient centers at major hospitals, with interpreter services in multiple languages
Safety & recourse
Very safe for visitors · Established malpractice recourse

General guidance — confirm current rules for your nationality with official sources. Verified against: Korea Immigration — K-ETA temporary exemption extended to 31 Dec 2026 (MOFA/KPMG GMS alert) · Korea e-Arrival Card mandatory from 1 Jan 2026 · Medical Korea — medical visa (C-3-3 / G-1-10), KHIDI · MOHW — Korea attracts 1.17 million foreign patients in 2024.

Data & sources

31% verified View verified only

How much of this profile is verified data — every section above carries a chip telling you where its numbers come from.

51%
data confidence · Partial
Verified facts31%
Profile filled94%
All 16 data fields — what's verified, imported or modeled Show more
  • Identity & location ✓ Verified
  • Accreditation ✓ Verified
  • Published prices Imported
  • Languages Not yet collected
  • Patient reviews ✓ Verified
  • Staff & expertise Imported
  • Safety & complications Modeled
  • Accommodation & rooms Modeled
  • Facilities & access Imported
  • Insurance & payment Modeled
  • Inclusive & accessible care Modeled
  • Ownership & governance ✓ Verified
  • Volume & outcomes Modeled
  • International-patient mix Modeled
  • Surgical team depth Modeled
  • Specialties & clinical professions ✓ Verified

Every field is tagged by source state. "Verified" = sourced and checked; "Imported" = real data pending re-verification; "Modeled" = deterministic placeholder for this preview; "Not yet collected" = on our roadmap. Confidence feeds the Trust Index and the finder's verified-only filter. Methodology →

Reviews, staff, accreditations, awards, research and inclusive-care figures are aggregated or modeled from published signals for this preview; real registry, outcome and review data replace them before launch. How we model this →