Wealth share of the richest 1% in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Wealth share of the richest 1% was 30.1% in 2024. ▼ Falling
Wealth share of the richest 1% in Saudi Arabia, 1820–2024
Source: World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
The most recent figure for wealth share of the richest 1% in Saudi Arabia is 30.1%, measured in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 56 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.1% on the previous year and down 0.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, wealth share of the richest 1% in Saudi Arabia peaked at 47.0% in 1970 and was at its lowest, 30.1%, in 2024.
That places Saudi Arabia 57th out of 215 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 56 years of available data.
Wealth share of the richest 1% in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1820 | 42.8% | — |
| 1850 | 44.6% | +4.2% |
| 1880 | 45.5% | +2.0% |
| 1900 | 46.2% | +1.7% |
| 1910 | 45.9% | -0.8% |
| 1920 | 46.1% | +0.6% |
| 1930 | 46.1% | +0.0% |
| 1940 | 46.0% | -0.2% |
| 1950 | 45.2% | -1.7% |
| 1960 | 46.0% | +1.8% |
| 1970 | 47.0% | +2.0% |
| 1980 | 30.1% | -35.9% |
| 1981 | 30.1% | -0.0% |
| 1982 | 30.1% | +0.1% |
| 1983 | 30.2% | +0.2% |
| 1984 | 30.2% | -0.1% |
| 1985 | 30.1% | -0.1% |
| 1986 | 30.1% | +0.1% |
| 1987 | 30.1% | -0.2% |
| 1988 | 30.1% | -0.1% |
| 1989 | 30.1% | +0.1% |
| 1990 | 30.1% | +0.1% |
| 1991 | 30.2% | +0.1% |
| 1992 | 30.1% | -0.1% |
| 1993 | 30.2% | +0.2% |
| 1994 | 30.2% | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 30.2% | -0.1% |
| 1996 | 30.1% | -0.3% |
| 1997 | 31.3% | +4.1% |
| 1998 | 32.2% | +2.9% |
| 1999 | 30.7% | -4.7% |
| 2000 | 31.0% | +1.1% |
| 2001 | 31.1% | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 31.2% | +0.4% |
| 2003 | 30.9% | -0.8% |
| 2004 | 30.6% | -1.2% |
| 2005 | 30.5% | -0.2% |
| 2006 | 31.4% | +3.0% |
| 2007 | 31.5% | +0.3% |
| 2008 | 32.6% | +3.5% |
| 2009 | 31.4% | -3.8% |
| 2010 | 31.3% | -0.2% |
| 2011 | 30.7% | -1.9% |
| 2012 | 30.3% | -1.1% |
| 2013 | 30.3% | -0.1% |
| 2014 | 30.2% | -0.5% |
| 2015 | 30.1% | -0.1% |
| 2016 | 30.2% | +0.2% |
| 2017 | 30.1% | -0.3% |
| 2018 | 30.1% | +0.1% |
| 2019 | 30.2% | +0.2% |
| 2020 | 30.1% | -0.3% |
| 2021 | 30.1% | +0.2% |
| 2022 | 30.2% | +0.1% |
| 2023 | 30.1% | -0.3% |
| 2024 | 30.1% | -0.1% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 30.1% is above the median for high income countries, which is 27.5%, 1.1× the median. (79 countries reporting)
- Saudi Arabia's 30.1% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 28.6%, 1.0× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Wealth share of the richest 1% in Saudi Arabia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | -35.9% | 47.0% | 30.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1820s | 42.8% | 42.8% | 42.8% | 1 |
| 1850s | 44.6% | 44.6% | 44.6% | 1 |
| 1880s | 45.5% | 45.5% | 45.5% | 1 |
| 1900s | 46.2% | 46.2% | 46.2% | 1 |
| 1910s | 45.9% | 45.9% | 45.9% | 1 |
| 1920s | 46.1% | 46.1% | 46.1% | 1 |
| 1930s | 46.1% | 46.1% | 46.1% | 1 |
| 1940s | 46.0% | 46.0% | 46.0% | 1 |
| 1950s | 45.2% | 45.2% | 45.2% | 1 |
| 1960s | 46.0% | 46.0% | 46.0% | 1 |
| 1970s | 47.0% | 47.0% | 47.0% | 1 |
| 1980s | 30.1% | 30.1% | 30.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 30.5% | 30.1% | 32.2% | 10 |
| 2000s | 31.2% | 30.5% | 32.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 30.4% | 30.1% | 31.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 30.1% | 30.1% | 30.2% | 5 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More reference data data for Saudi Arabia
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1847 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.4 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.44 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.1771 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 2.44 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.6194 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.2207 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 6.07 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 10.64 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.9641 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is wealth share of the richest 1% in Saudi Arabia?
- Wealth share of the richest 1% in Saudi Arabia was 30.1% in 2024, according to World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest wealth share of the richest 1% recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 47.0% in 1970.
- What is the lowest wealth share of the richest 1% recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 30.1% in 2024.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for wealth share of the richest 1%?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 57th out of 215 countries with data for 2024.
- Is wealth share of the richest 1% rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 0.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from World Inequality Database (WID.world) (2026) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Wealth share of the richest 1%. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 56 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Share of wealth owned by the richest 1% of the population. Wealth is defined as the total value of non-financial and financial assets (housing, land, deposits, bonds, equities, etc.) held by households, minus their debts.