Urban population growth in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Urban population growth was 4.8% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Urban population growth in Saudi Arabia, 1961–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in annual %.
Analysis
In 2025, urban population growth in Saudi Arabia stood at 4.8%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.1% on the previous year and down 10.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population growth in Saudi Arabia peaked at 8.6% in 1968 and was at its lowest, -2.3%, in 2018.
That places Saudi Arabia 7th out of 217 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 65 years of available data.
Urban population growth in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | annual % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1961 | 7.7% | — |
| 1962 | 7.7% | -0.6% |
| 1963 | 7.9% | +2.5% |
| 1964 | 8.2% | +4.3% |
| 1965 | 8.4% | +2.5% |
| 1966 | 8.5% | +1.1% |
| 1967 | 8.6% | +0.6% |
| 1968 | 8.6% | +0.2% |
| 1969 | 8.5% | -0.5% |
| 1970 | 8.5% | -0.7% |
| 1971 | 8.5% | +0.2% |
| 1972 | 8.5% | +0.4% |
| 1973 | 8.5% | -0.9% |
| 1974 | 8.2% | -2.6% |
| 1975 | 8.1% | -1.9% |
| 1976 | 8.1% | +0.7% |
| 1977 | 8.3% | +1.3% |
| 1978 | 8.3% | +0.6% |
| 1979 | 8.3% | -0.2% |
| 1980 | 8.2% | -0.9% |
| 1981 | 8.2% | -0.3% |
| 1982 | 8.1% | -0.4% |
| 1983 | 8.0% | -2.2% |
| 1984 | 7.6% | -4.0% |
| 1985 | 7.2% | -5.2% |
| 1986 | 7.0% | -3.5% |
| 1987 | 6.8% | -2.5% |
| 1988 | 6.4% | -6.0% |
| 1989 | 6.0% | -5.7% |
| 1990 | 5.8% | -4.0% |
| 1991 | 5.5% | -5.3% |
| 1992 | 5.2% | -6.1% |
| 1993 | 4.9% | -5.7% |
| 1994 | 4.7% | -4.1% |
| 1995 | 4.5% | -3.9% |
| 1996 | 4.3% | -4.1% |
| 1997 | 4.1% | -3.9% |
| 1998 | 4.0% | -3.5% |
| 1999 | 3.9% | -3.3% |
| 2000 | 4.7% | +21.6% |
| 2001 | 5.4% | +15.7% |
| 2002 | 5.2% | -4.1% |
| 2003 | 5.0% | -3.7% |
| 2004 | 4.9% | -3.3% |
| 2005 | 4.7% | -3.1% |
| 2006 | 4.6% | -3.1% |
| 2007 | 4.4% | -2.9% |
| 2008 | 4.3% | -2.8% |
| 2009 | 4.2% | -2.7% |
| 2010 | -0.7% | -117.5% |
| 2011 | 4.8% | -750.5% |
| 2012 | 4.4% | -7.0% |
| 2013 | 5.6% | +27.3% |
| 2014 | 2.7% | -52.7% |
| 2015 | 5.4% | +102.7% |
| 2016 | 4.0% | -26.7% |
| 2017 | 0.3% | -92.9% |
| 2018 | -2.3% | -936.3% |
| 2019 | -0.2% | -89.9% |
| 2020 | 5.0% | -2215.5% |
| 2021 | -2.3% | -145.1% |
| 2022 | 4.6% | -303.4% |
| 2023 | 4.8% | +4.7% |
| 2024 | 4.8% | -0.2% |
| 2025 | 4.8% | -0.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 8.3% | 7.7% | 8.6% | 9 |
| 1970s | 8.3% | 8.1% | 8.5% | 10 |
| 1980s | 7.4% | 6.0% | 8.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 4.7% | 3.9% | 5.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 4.7% | 4.2% | 5.4% | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.4% | -2.3% | 5.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 3.6% | -2.3% | 5.0% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
- 4 Niger 5.0% compare
- 5 Mozambique 4.9% compare
- 6 United Arab Emirates 4.9% compare
- 8 Tanzania, United Republic of 4.8% compare
- 9 Uganda 4.8% compare
- 10 Mali 4.8% compare
More climate change data for Saudi Arabia
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) 4,043 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 1,830 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 2,213 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 6.91 kt (2050)
- Emissions from livestock — Emissions 79.03 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) 1,017 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from N2O 1,002 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions (CO2eq) from CH4 15.05 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 3.78 kt (2050)
- Emissions from crops — Emissions 0.5376 kt (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is urban population growth in Saudi Arabia?
- Urban population growth in Saudi Arabia was 4.8% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population growth recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 8.6% in 1968.
- What is the lowest urban population growth recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was -2.3% in 2018.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for urban population growth?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 7th out of 217 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population growth rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Urban population growth (annual %). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Annual urban population growth rate for year t is the exponential rate of growth of midyear urban population from year t-1 to t, expressed as a percentage. Urban population refers to people living in urban areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated using World Bank total population estimates and urban ratios from the United Nations World Urbanization Prospects.