Urban population in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Urban population was 84.6% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Urban population in Saudi Arabia, 1960–2025
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN). Measured in % of total population.
Analysis
Saudi Arabia recorded 84.6% for urban population in 2025. That is the highest value across all 66 years on record.
The figure is up 0.2% on the previous year and up 2.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, urban population in Saudi Arabia peaked at 84.6% in 2025 and was at its lowest, 31.4%, in 1960.
Saudi Arabia ranks 47th of 217 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 66 years of available data.
Urban population in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | % of total population | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 31.4% | — |
| 1961 | 32.8% | +4.2% |
| 1962 | 34.1% | +4.1% |
| 1963 | 35.6% | +4.3% |
| 1964 | 37.2% | +4.6% |
| 1965 | 39.0% | +4.8% |
| 1966 | 40.9% | +4.9% |
| 1967 | 42.9% | +4.9% |
| 1968 | 45.0% | +4.8% |
| 1969 | 47.1% | +4.6% |
| 1970 | 49.2% | +4.4% |
| 1971 | 51.2% | +4.2% |
| 1972 | 53.2% | +3.8% |
| 1973 | 55.1% | +3.5% |
| 1974 | 56.8% | +3.1% |
| 1975 | 58.4% | +2.9% |
| 1976 | 60.1% | +2.8% |
| 1977 | 61.7% | +2.7% |
| 1978 | 63.3% | +2.6% |
| 1979 | 64.9% | +2.5% |
| 1980 | 66.4% | +2.4% |
| 1981 | 67.9% | +2.2% |
| 1982 | 69.3% | +2.1% |
| 1983 | 70.6% | +1.9% |
| 1984 | 71.8% | +1.7% |
| 1985 | 72.9% | +1.5% |
| 1986 | 73.9% | +1.3% |
| 1987 | 74.8% | +1.2% |
| 1988 | 75.6% | +1.1% |
| 1989 | 76.3% | +1.0% |
| 1990 | 77.0% | +0.9% |
| 1991 | 77.6% | +0.7% |
| 1992 | 78.0% | +0.6% |
| 1993 | 78.3% | +0.4% |
| 1994 | 78.6% | +0.4% |
| 1995 | 78.9% | +0.3% |
| 1996 | 79.2% | +0.3% |
| 1997 | 79.4% | +0.3% |
| 1998 | 79.6% | +0.3% |
| 1999 | 79.8% | +0.2% |
| 2000 | 80.0% | +0.2% |
| 2001 | 80.2% | +0.2% |
| 2002 | 80.3% | +0.2% |
| 2003 | 80.5% | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 80.8% | +0.3% |
| 2005 | 81.0% | +0.3% |
| 2006 | 81.2% | +0.3% |
| 2007 | 81.4% | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 81.6% | +0.3% |
| 2009 | 81.9% | +0.3% |
| 2010 | 82.1% | +0.3% |
| 2011 | 82.3% | +0.2% |
| 2012 | 82.4% | +0.2% |
| 2013 | 82.6% | +0.2% |
| 2014 | 82.8% | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 83.0% | +0.2% |
| 2016 | 83.1% | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 83.3% | +0.2% |
| 2018 | 83.5% | +0.2% |
| 2019 | 83.6% | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 83.8% | +0.2% |
| 2021 | 84.0% | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 84.1% | +0.2% |
| 2023 | 84.3% | +0.2% |
| 2024 | 84.5% | +0.2% |
| 2025 | 84.6% | +0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 38.6% | 31.4% | 47.1% | 10 |
| 1970s | 57.4% | 49.2% | 64.9% | 10 |
| 1980s | 72.0% | 66.4% | 76.3% | 10 |
| 1990s | 78.6% | 77.0% | 79.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 80.9% | 80.0% | 81.9% | 10 |
| 2010s | 82.9% | 82.1% | 83.6% | 10 |
| 2020s | 84.2% | 83.8% | 84.6% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
- 44 United Arab Emirates 86.0% compare
- 45 Switzerland 85.7% compare
- 46 Peru 85.6% compare
- 48 New Zealand 84.0% compare
- 49 Norway 83.6% compare
- 50 United Kingdom 83.3% 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 in Saudi Arabia?
- Urban population in Saudi Arabia was 84.6% in 2025, according to World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN).
- What is the highest urban population recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 84.6% in 2025.
- What is the lowest urban population recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 31.4% in 1960.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for urban population?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 47th out of 217 countries with data for 2025.
- Is urban population rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 2.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as part of Urban population (% of total population). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 66 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Urban population refers to people living in urban areas as defined by national statistical offices. The data are collected and smoothed by United Nations Population Division.