Greenhouse gas emissions in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Greenhouse gas emissions was 821.84 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2024)
821.84 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
Change on year
up 2.4%
World rank
9th
of 199 countries
All-time high
823.83 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
in 2019
All-time low
-667,766 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents
in 1850
Years of data
175
1850–2024
Greenhouse gas emissions in Saudi Arabia, 1850–2024
Source: Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in tonnes of CO₂ equivalents.
Analysis
In 2024, greenhouse gas emissions in Saudi Arabia stood at 821.84 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents.
That represents a change of up 2.4% on the previous year and up 18.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, greenhouse gas emissions in Saudi Arabia peaked at 823.83 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2019 and was at its lowest, -667,766 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents, in 1850.
Saudi Arabia ranks 9th of 199 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1850s | -269,787 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | -667,766 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 22,505 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1860s | 163,210 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 58,035 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 239,837 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1870s | 299,190 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 257,321 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 338,508 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1880s | 359,468 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 344,518 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 374,804 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1890s | 387,949 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 377,346 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 402,169 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1900s | 384,940 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 365,343 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 402,440 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1910s | 372,675 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 352,167 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 391,292 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1920s | 379,992 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 358,956 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 420,822 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1930s | 991,838 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 337,141 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 6.02 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1940s | 36.84 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 6.57 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 89.39 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1950s | 7.10 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 2.15 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 17.74 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1960s | 26.94 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 8.20 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 60.21 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1970s | 145.62 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 79.02 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 207.59 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1980s | 233.37 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 203.43 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 255.15 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 1990s | 320.30 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 241.73 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 368.27 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2000s | 482.46 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 380.73 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 594.49 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2010s | 723.23 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 642.02 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 823.83 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 10 |
| 2020s | 800.36 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 770.18 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 821.84 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents | 5 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
- 6 Indonesia 1.90 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 7 Iran 1.01 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 8 Japan 1.01 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 10 Canada 802.73 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 11 Democratic Republic of Congo 680.71 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
- 12 Turkey 680.01 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents compare
More climate change data for Saudi Arabia
- Share of global CO₂ emissions and population 0.7% (2100)
- Population growth 4.6% (2025)
- Population, total 36.97 million (2025)
- Urban population growth 4.8% (2025)
- Urban population 31.28 million (2025)
- Urban population 84.6% (2025)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. GDP per capita 20.38 tonnes per person (2024)
- Cumulative CO₂ emissions 19.02 billion tonnes (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita 20.38 tonnes per person (2024)
- CO₂ emissions per capita vs. share of electricity generation from renewables 20.38 tonnes per person (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is greenhouse gas emissions in Saudi Arabia?
- Greenhouse gas emissions in Saudi Arabia was 821.84 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2024, according to Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest greenhouse gas emissions recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 823.83 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 2019.
- What is the lowest greenhouse gas emissions recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was -667,766 tonnes of CO₂ equivalents in 1850.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for greenhouse gas emissions?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 9th out of 199 countries with data for 2024.
- Is greenhouse gas emissions rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 18.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from Jones et al. (2025) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Greenhouse gas emissions. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 175 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Greenhouse gas emissions are measured in tonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalents over a 100-year timescale.