Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Saudi Arabia is 76% bigger than South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 2,149,690 km² (2023) · South Africa: 1,219,090 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
South Africa’s coastline is 6% longer than Saudi Arabia’s.
Saudi Arabia: 2,640 km (2026 edition) · South Africa: 2,798 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
South Africa’s highest peak towers 450 m above Saudi Arabia’s.
Saudi Arabia: 3,000 m (2026 edition) · South Africa: 3,450 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
South Africa has 75% more people than Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 37 million (2025) · South Africa: 64.7 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
South Africa is 3.1 times as densely populated as Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 17 per km² (2025) · South Africa: 53 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Saudi Arabia are 1.0 cm taller than in South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 170.7 cm (2019) · South Africa: 169.6 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Saudi Arabia and South Africa are practically level.
Saudi Arabia: 158.8 cm (2019) · South Africa: 158.6 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Saudi Arabia is 1 year older than in South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 29.2 years (2023) · South Africa: 28.2 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Saudi Arabia have 0.1 more children on average than in South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 2.31 children per woman (2024) · South Africa: 2.21 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
6.9% of people in South Africa are 65 or older, versus 3.1% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 3.1% (2025) · South Africa: 6.9% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
South Africa has produced 1.4 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Saudi Arabia 0.0.
Saudi Arabia: 0 (2025) · South Africa: 1.4 (2025)
How many official languages?
South Africa has 11 official languages, Saudi Arabia 1.
Saudi Arabia: 1 (2026) · South Africa: 11 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Saudi Arabia’s economy is 3 times the size of South Africa’s.
Saudi Arabia: $1.28 trillion (2025) · South Africa: $427 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Saudi Arabia produces 4.6 times as much per person as South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: Int$73,784 (2025) · South Africa: Int$15,906 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Saudi Arabia: no data · South Africa: 54.1 (2022)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 32% in South Africa, versus 3.0% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 3% (2025) · South Africa: 32.4% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Saudi Arabia spends 7.3% of its GDP on the military, South Africa 0.7%.
Saudi Arabia: 7.3% (2024) · South Africa: 0.7% (2024)
How expensive is it?
Saudi Arabia’s price level (US = 100) is 1.1× South Africa’s.
Saudi Arabia: 47% (2025) · South Africa: 41% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Saudi Arabia spends 3.4 times as much on health per person as South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: $1,825 (2023) · South Africa: $537 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Saudi Arabia live 13 years longer than in South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 79 years (2024) · South Africa: 66.3 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in South Africa is 5.1 times as likely to die before turning one as in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 4.7 per 1,000 (2024) · South Africa: 24.2 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Saudi Arabia has 4.3 times as many doctors per person as South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 3.4 per 1,000 (2023) · South Africa: 0.8 per 1,000 (2022)
How common is obesity?
39% of adults in Saudi Arabia are obese, versus 31% in South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 39.2% (2024) · South Africa: 31.3% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
24% of adults in South Africa smoke, versus 15% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 14.7% (2024) · South Africa: 23.7% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Saudi Arabia rate their lives 1.81 points higher than in South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 6.82 (2025) · South Africa: 5.01 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Saudi Arabia: no data · South Africa: 8.6 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
South Africa and Saudi Arabia are nearly identical here.
Saudi Arabia: 58.1 kg (2023) · South Africa: 58.3 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Saudi Arabia has 966 kcal more food per person per day than South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 3,660 kcal (2023) · South Africa: 2,694 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in South Africa put in 57 more hours a year than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 2,125 hours (2023) · South Africa: 2,181 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
South Africa and Saudi Arabia are practically level.
Saudi Arabia: 11.6 years (2023) · South Africa: 11.6 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Saudi Arabia welcomed 6 times as many tourists per resident as South Africa (2019).
Saudi Arabia: 0.84 (2024) · South Africa: 0.14 (2024)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
100% of people in Saudi Arabia are online, versus 78% in South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 100% (2024) · South Africa: 78% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
100% of people in Saudi Arabia have electricity, versus 90% in South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 100% (2024) · South Africa: 90.2% (2024)
How many live in cities?
85% of people in Saudi Arabia live in cities, versus 64% in South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 85% (2025) · South Africa: 64% (2025)
How many phones per person?
South Africa has 179 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Saudi Arabia 160.
Saudi Arabia: 160 (2024) · South Africa: 179 (2024)
How much railway is there?
South Africa’s railway network is 7.1 times as long as Saudi Arabia’s.
Saudi Arabia: 2,939 km (2018) · South Africa: 20,953 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Saudi Arabia fly 5.4 times as many passengers per resident as those from South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 1.3 (2023) · South Africa: 0.24 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 14% of South Africa, but only 0.5% of Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 0.5% (2023) · South Africa: 14% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Saudi Arabia emits 3 times as much CO₂ as someone in South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 20.4 t (2024) · South Africa: 6.9 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
14% of South Africa’s electricity is renewable, versus 2.2% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 2.2% (2024) · South Africa: 13.6% (2025)
How clean is the air?
The air in Saudi Arabia carries 2.1 times as much fine dust as in South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 50.4 µg/m³ (2024) · South Africa: 24.4 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 47 times as likely to be murdered in South Africa as in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 0.9 per 100k (2019) · South Africa: 43.7 per 100k (2022)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in South Africa are 32% deadlier than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 18.5 per 100k (2021) · South Africa: 24.5 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Saudi Arabia is on average 8.4 °C warmer than South Africa.
Saudi Arabia: 26.8°C (2016–2025 avg) · South Africa: 18.4°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
South Africa gets 8.3 times as much rain as Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 61 mm (2016–2025 avg) · South Africa: 511 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Saudi Arabia bigger than South Africa?
Saudi Arabia is larger. Saudi Arabia is 76% bigger than South Africa.
Which has more people, Saudi Arabia or South Africa?
South Africa has 75% more people than Saudi Arabia (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Saudi Arabia or South Africa?
People in Saudi Arabia live 13 years longer than in South Africa. Life expectancy at birth is 79.0 years in Saudi Arabia and 66.3 in South Africa.
Are people taller in Saudi Arabia or South Africa?
Men in Saudi Arabia are 1.0 cm taller than in South Africa (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
Keep duelling
Saudi Arabia vs Iraq 
Saudi Arabia vs Jordan 
Saudi Arabia vs Kuwait 
Saudi Arabia vs Oman 
Saudi Arabia vs Qatar 
Saudi Arabia vs United Arab Emirates 
South Africa vs Botswana 
South Africa vs Lesotho 
South Africa vs Mozambique 
South Africa vs Namibia 
South Africa vs Eswatini 
South Africa vs Zimbabwe 
Saudi Arabia vs the world → South Africa vs the world →