Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan articulates a vision for how Seattle will accommodate residential and employment growth over the next 20 years, while promoting the values of its citizens, a vibrant economy and livable neighborhoods. The Plan, titled "Toward a Sustainable Seattle,"was adopted in 1994 to comply with the requirements of the Washington State Growth Management Act. The Plan does this by encouraging most new growth to locate in places it designates as either urban centers or urban villages. It contains growth targets for each urban center and urban village to indicate the amount of growth the City is planning over the coming 20 years. The Plan also includes policies that describe how the City intends to serve this growth with transportation and other infrastructure.

The Comp Plan is part of a hierarchy of related plans, including Vision 2020 prepared by the Puget Sound Regional Council (which addresses growth in the four-county region), the Countywide Planning Policies (which provides guidance to the comprehensive plans of all jurisdictions in King County) and Seattle’s neighborhood’s plans (which tailor the City’s Comprehensive Plan policies for individual neighborhoods. The goals and policies of the neighborhood plans are all contained within the City’s Comprehensive Plan.

The City has amended the Plan most years since it was first adopted. In 2004, the City completed a thorough review of the Plan and made significant changes to the content and appearance of the Plan, including a new planning target year – 2024 – along with new citywide and urban village growth targets(see Population & Demographics).

DPD's Comprehensive and Regional Planning Unit is responsible for updating and evaluating the Comprehensive Plan and for regional policy coordination.