Domestic general government health expenditure in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Domestic general government health expenditure was 4.4% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Domestic general government health expenditure in Saudi Arabia, 2000–2023
Source: Global Health Expenditure Database, updated December 12th, 2025, World Health Organization (WHO). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for domestic general government health expenditure in Saudi Arabia is 4.4%, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of up 7.9% on the previous year and up 43.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, domestic general government health expenditure in Saudi Arabia peaked at 5.2% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 1.9%, in 2008.
Saudi Arabia ranks 69th of 193 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
Domestic general government health expenditure in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 3.0% | — |
| 2001 | 3.2% | +6.7% |
| 2002 | 3.1% | -5.1% |
| 2003 | 2.9% | -6.3% |
| 2004 | 2.6% | -11.0% |
| 2005 | 2.5% | -3.3% |
| 2006 | 2.6% | +6.6% |
| 2007 | 2.5% | -5.1% |
| 2008 | 1.9% | -24.6% |
| 2009 | 2.8% | +47.6% |
| 2010 | 2.3% | -19.0% |
| 2011 | 2.5% | +9.3% |
| 2012 | 2.7% | +10.3% |
| 2013 | 3.1% | +13.0% |
| 2014 | 3.7% | +19.6% |
| 2015 | 4.0% | +9.0% |
| 2016 | 4.3% | +8.2% |
| 2017 | 4.3% | -0.2% |
| 2018 | 3.8% | -13.4% |
| 2019 | 4.0% | +7.5% |
| 2020 | 5.2% | +29.0% |
| 2021 | 4.6% | -12.3% |
| 2022 | 4.1% | -10.2% |
| 2023 | 4.4% | +7.9% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 4.4% is below the median for high income countries, which is 5.3%, 84% of the median. (64 countries reporting)
- Saudi Arabia's 4.4% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 2.8%, 1.6× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 2.7% | 1.9% | 3.2% | 10 |
| 2010s | 3.5% | 2.3% | 4.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.6% | 4.1% | 5.2% | 4 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More health data for Saudi Arabia
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -0.8373 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.3736 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 483.6 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 829 deaths (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 1 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 5.31 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0384 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 5.38 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is domestic general government health expenditure in Saudi Arabia?
- Domestic general government health expenditure in Saudi Arabia was 4.4% in 2023, according to Global Health Expenditure Database, updated December 12th, 2025, World Health Organization (WHO).
- What is the highest domestic general government health expenditure recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 5.2% in 2020.
- What is the lowest domestic general government health expenditure recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.9% in 2008.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for domestic general government health expenditure?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 69th out of 193 countries with data for 2023.
- Is domestic general government health expenditure rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 43.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from Global Health Expenditure Database, updated December 12th, 2025, World Health Organization (WHO), published as part of Domestic general government health expenditure (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Public expenditure on health from domestic sources as a share of the economy as measured by GDP.