Saudi Arabia - Geography

Here, let us take a look at the Geography of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is the largest country in the world without a river; extensive coastlines on the Persian Gulf and Red Sea allow for considerable shipping (especially of crude oil) through the Persian Gulf and Suez Canal. Mother's mean age at first birth is (), whereas, the Maternal mortality ratio is 16 deaths/100,000 live births (2020 est.)

Geographical data of Saudi Arabia
Location Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea, north of Yemen
Geographic coordinates 25 00 N, 45 00 E
Map references Middle East
Tarrain mostly sandy desert
Natural Resources petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, gold, copper
Natural Hazards

frequent sand and dust storms

volcanism: despite many volcanic formations, there has been little activity in the past few centuries; volcanoes include Harrat Rahat, Harrat Khaybar, Harrat Lunayyir, and Jabal Yar
Irrigated Land 11,910 sq km (2018)
Major rivers (by length in km)
Major aquifers Arabian Aquifer System
Land Boundaries 4,272 km
Border Countries Iraq 811 km; Jordan 731 km; Kuwait 221 km; Oman 658 km; Qatar 87 km; UAE 457 km; Yemen 1,307 km
Coastline 2,640 km
Climate harsh, dry desert with great temperature extremes
Area
Total Area
Land Area 2,149,690 sq km
Water Area 0 sq km
comparative Area slightly more than one-fifth the size of the US
Maritime Claims
Territorial sea 12 nm
Contiguous zone 18 nm
Continental shelf not specified
Elevations
Highest point As Sarawat range, 3,000 m
Lowest point Persian Gulf 0 m
Mean elevation 665 m
Land Use
Agricultural land 80.7% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land: arable land arable land: 1.5% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land: permanent crops permanent crops: 0.1% (2018 est.)
Agricultural land: permanent pasture permanent pasture: 79.1% (2018 est.)
Forest 0.5% (2018 est.)
Other 18.8% (2018 est.)
Population Distribution

Historically a population that was mostly nomadic or semi-nomadic, the Saudi population has become more settled since petroleum was discovered in the 1930s; most of the economic activities - and with it the country's population - is concentrated in a wide area across the middle of the peninsula, from Ad Dammam in the east, through Riyadh in the interior, to Mecca-Medina in the west near the Red Sea

People and Society

In Saudi Arabia, the different Ethnic groups are such that we have: Arab 90%, Afro-Asian 10%

Population
Pop growth rate 1.68% (2024 est.)
Birth rate 13.6 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Death rate 3.5 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Health expenditure 5.5% of GDP (2018)
Physicians Density
Hospital bed Density 2.2 beds/1,000 population (2017)
Total fertility rate 1.87 children born/woman (2024 est.)
Gross reproduction rate 0.91 (2024 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rate 27.9% (2019)
Est married women (ages 15-49) 63.2% (2023 est.)
Literacy age 15 and over can read and write
Education expenditures 7.8% of GDP (2020) NA
Net Migration rate 6.7 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)
Nationality Saudi or Saudi Arabian | Saudi(s)
Languages
Religions Muslim (official; citizens are 85-90% Sunni and 10-12% Shia), other (includes Eastern Orthodox, Protestant, Roman Catholic, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, and Sikh) (2020 est.)
Age Structure
0-14 years 22.9% (male 4,266,720/female 4,097,270)
15-64 years 72.7% (male 15,577,133/female 10,994,061)
65 years and over 4.4% (2024 est.) (male 856,985/female 752,262)
Dependency Ratios
Total dependency ratio 40.4
Youth dependency ratio 36.8
Elderly dependency ratio 3.7
Potential support ratio 27.4 (2021 est.)
Median Age
Total 32.4 years (2024 est.)
Male 34.6 years
Female 29.3 years
Urbanization
Urban population 85% of total population (2023)
Rate of urbanization 1.69% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)
Major urban areas (Pop) 7.682 million RIYADH (capital), 4.863 million Jeddah, 2.150 million Mecca, 1.573 million Medina, 1.329 million Ad Dammam, 872,000 million Hufuf-Mubarraz (2023).
Sex Ratio
At birth 1.05 male(s)/female
0-14 years 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years 1.42 male(s)/female
65 years and over 1.14 male(s)/female
Total population 1.31 male(s)/female (2024 est.)
Infant Motality
Total 11.7 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)
Male 12.8 deaths/1,000 live births
Female 10.5 deaths/1,000 live births
Life Expectancy at birth
Total population 77.2 years (2024 est.)
Male 75.6 years
Female 78.8 years
Drinking Water Sources
Improved: urban urban: NA
Improved: rural rural: NA
Improved: total total: 100% of population
Unimproved: urban urban: NA
Unimproved: rural rural: NA
Unimproved: total total: 0% of population (2020 est.)
Sanitation facility acess
Improved: urban urban: NA
Improved: rural rural: NA
Improved: total total: 100% of population
Unimproved: urban urban: NA
Unimproved: rural rural: NA
Unimproved: total total: 0% of population (2020 est.)
Alcohol consumption per capita
Total 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Beer 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Wine 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Spirits 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Other alcohols 0 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)
Tobacco use
Total 14.3% (2020 est.)
Male 26.5% (2020 est.)
Female 2% (2020 est.)
Demographic profile
All Important Facts about Saudi Arabia

Want to know more about Saudi Arabia? Check all different factbooks for Saudi Arabia below.

Saudi Arabia is found in Western Asia