Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight was 3.5% in 2020. ◆ Volatile
Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight in Saudi Arabia, 1994–2020
Source: Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in % of children under 5.
Analysis
In 2020, malnutrition: share of children who are underweight in Saudi Arabia stood at 3.5%.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 12.5% on the previous year and down 38.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, malnutrition: share of children who are underweight in Saudi Arabia peaked at 13.5% in 1994 and was at its lowest, 3.3%, in 2018.
That places Saudi Arabia 70th out of 96 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 13.5% | 13.5% | 13.5% | 1 |
| 2000s | 5.3% | 5.3% | 5.3% | 1 |
| 2010s | 4.8% | 3.3% | 6.2% | 5 |
| 2020s | 3.5% | 3.5% | 3.5% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More reference data data for Saudi Arabia
- Temperature anomalies by month 0.6025 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 0.988 °C (2026)
- Spring temperature anomalies -0.1508 °C (2026)
- Autumn temperature anomalies 0.9644 °C (2025)
- Universal right to vote 0 (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice 0 (2025)
- Winter temperature anomalies 0.5548 °C (2025)
- Consumer price index 138.56 2010 = 100 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 0 (2025)
- Elected parliament 0 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is malnutrition: share of children who are underweight in Saudi Arabia?
- Malnutrition: share of children who are underweight in Saudi Arabia was 3.5% in 2020, according to Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest malnutrition: share of children who are underweight recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 13.5% in 1994.
- What is the lowest malnutrition: share of children who are underweight recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.3% in 2018.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for malnutrition: share of children who are underweight?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 70th out of 96 countries with data for 2020.
- Is malnutrition: share of children who are underweight rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 38.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from Joint child Malnutrition Estimates (JME) - UNICEF, WHO, and World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Malnutrition: Share of children who are underweight. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
The share of children younger than five years old whose weight for age is more than two standard deviations below the median for the international reference population for ages 0-59 months.