Prevalence of overweight in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Prevalence of overweight was 71.8% in 2022. ▲ Rising
Prevalence of overweight in Saudi Arabia, 1990–2022
Source: World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/). Measured in % of adults.
Analysis
The most recent figure for prevalence of overweight in Saudi Arabia is 71.8%, measured in 2022. That is the highest value across all 33 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.4% on the previous year and up 4.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, prevalence of overweight in Saudi Arabia peaked at 71.8% in 2022 and was at its lowest, 58.2%, in 1990.
Saudi Arabia ranks 20th of 196 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Prevalence of overweight in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | % of adults | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 58.2% | — |
| 1991 | 58.6% | +0.8% |
| 1992 | 59.1% | +0.8% |
| 1993 | 59.5% | +0.7% |
| 1994 | 60.0% | +0.8% |
| 1995 | 60.5% | +0.8% |
| 1996 | 60.9% | +0.8% |
| 1997 | 61.5% | +0.8% |
| 1998 | 62.0% | +0.9% |
| 1999 | 62.5% | +0.9% |
| 2000 | 63.1% | +0.9% |
| 2001 | 63.7% | +0.9% |
| 2002 | 64.3% | +0.9% |
| 2003 | 64.8% | +0.9% |
| 2004 | 65.3% | +0.8% |
| 2005 | 65.8% | +0.7% |
| 2006 | 66.3% | +0.7% |
| 2007 | 66.7% | +0.6% |
| 2008 | 67.1% | +0.6% |
| 2009 | 67.6% | +0.6% |
| 2010 | 68.0% | +0.6% |
| 2011 | 68.4% | +0.6% |
| 2012 | 68.7% | +0.5% |
| 2013 | 69.1% | +0.5% |
| 2014 | 69.5% | +0.5% |
| 2015 | 69.8% | +0.5% |
| 2016 | 70.2% | +0.5% |
| 2017 | 70.5% | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 70.8% | +0.4% |
| 2019 | 71.1% | +0.4% |
| 2020 | 71.3% | +0.4% |
| 2021 | 71.6% | +0.3% |
| 2022 | 71.8% | +0.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 60.3% | 58.2% | 62.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 65.5% | 63.1% | 67.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 69.6% | 68.0% | 71.1% | 10 |
| 2020s | 71.6% | 71.3% | 71.8% | 3 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
- 17 Marshall Islands 73.2% compare
- 18 Belize 72.8% compare
- 19 United States of America 72.4% compare
- 21 Micronesia, Federated States of 71.7% compare
- 22 Panama 71.6% compare
- 23 Palau 71.3% compare
- 23 United Arab Emirates 71.3% compare
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 prevalence of overweight in Saudi Arabia?
- Prevalence of overweight in Saudi Arabia was 71.8% in 2022, according to World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/).
- What is the highest prevalence of overweight recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 71.8% in 2022.
- What is the lowest prevalence of overweight recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 58.2% in 1990.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for prevalence of overweight?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 20th out of 196 countries with data for 2022.
- Is prevalence of overweight rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 4.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory Data Repository (http://apps.who.int/ghodata/), published as part of Prevalence of overweight (% of adults). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Prevalence of overweight adults is the percentage of adults ages 18 and over whose Body Mass Index (BMI) is more than 25 kg/m2. Body Mass Index (BMI) is a simple index of weight-for-height, or the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters.