Abstract:
Against the backdrop of detailed territorial spatial planning and urban renewal, urban density zoning is a vital tool for controlling development intensity and spatial form. This paper defines it with Floor Area Ratio (FAR) and building height as core control indicators, focusing on residential land, commercial and service land, and industrial and warehousing land. On this basis, 17 sample cities covering five scale categories are selected to conduct a comparative analysis of the classification characteristics of development intensity, FAR, and building height across different cities. The study reveals that cities of different scales generally follow the spatial pattern of higher density in the central area, lower density in the peripheral area, and rigid height restrictions in special areas. Moreover, the larger the city scale, the more refined the classification of intensity and height. Accordingly, this paper proposes a unified five-level urban density zoning framework for urban construction land in China, and puts forward implementation pathways including adaptive application based on city scale and revisions for special areas. The findings can support density zoning in territorial spatial planning, regulatory detailed planning and urban renewal.