The duel
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
The United Arab Emirates fits inside Saudi Arabia 22 times.
Saudi Arabia: 2,149,690 km² (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 98,648 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
Saudi Arabia’s coastline is 2 times as long as the United Arab Emirates’.
Saudi Arabia: 2,640 km (2026 edition) · United Arab Emirates: 1,318 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Saudi Arabia’s highest peak towers 1,095 m above the United Arab Emirates’.
Saudi Arabia: 3,000 m (2026 edition) · United Arab Emirates: 1,905 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Saudi Arabia has 3.2 times as many people as the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia: 37 million (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 11.5 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
The United Arab Emirates is 9.4 times as densely populated as Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 17 per km² (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 162 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in the United Arab Emirates are 3.4 cm taller than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 170.7 cm (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 174.1 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in the United Arab Emirates are 1.7 cm taller than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 158.8 cm (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 160.5 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in the United Arab Emirates is 2 years older than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 29.2 years (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 31.2 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Saudi Arabia have 1.1 more children on average than in the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia: 2.31 children per woman (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 1.21 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
3.1% of people in Saudi Arabia are 65 or older, versus 1.8% in the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia: 3.1% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 1.8% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are practically level.
Saudi Arabia: 0 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 0 (2025)
How many official languages?
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are practically level.
Saudi Arabia: 1 (2026) · United Arab Emirates: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Saudi Arabia’s economy is 2.3 times the size of the United Arab Emirates’.
Saudi Arabia: $1.28 trillion (2025) · United Arab Emirates: $552 billion (2024)
How much is produced per person?
The United Arab Emirates produces 8% more per person than Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: Int$73,784 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: Int$79,344 (2024)
How evenly is income shared?
Saudi Arabia: no data · United Arab Emirates: 26.4 (2018)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 3.0% in Saudi Arabia, versus 2.2% in the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia: 3% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 2.2% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Saudi Arabia spends 7.3% of its GDP on the military, the United Arab Emirates 5.6%.
Saudi Arabia: 7.3% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 5.6% (2014)
How expensive is it?
The United Arab Emirates’ price level (US = 100) is 1.4× Saudi Arabia’s.
Saudi Arabia: 47% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 63% (2024)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The United Arab Emirates spends 32% more on health per person than Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: $1,825 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: $2,402 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 4.1 years longer than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 79 years (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 83.1 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Saudi Arabia is 24% more likely to die before turning one than in the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia: 4.7 per 1,000 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 3.8 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Saudi Arabia has 14% more doctors per person than the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia: 3.4 per 1,000 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 3 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is obesity?
39% of adults in Saudi Arabia are obese, versus 30% in the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia: 39.2% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 30.3% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
15% of adults in Saudi Arabia smoke, versus 9.0% in the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia: 14.7% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 9% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
The United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia are practically level.
Saudi Arabia: 6.82 (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 6.82 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Saudi Arabia: no data · United Arab Emirates: 0.6 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
The United Arab Emirates has 17% more meat per person than Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 58.1 kg (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 67.8 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Saudi Arabia has 535 kcal more food per person per day than the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia: 3,660 kcal (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 3,125 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in the United Arab Emirates put in 390 more hours a year than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 2,125 hours (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 2,514 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in the United Arab Emirates went to school 1.4 years longer than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 11.6 years (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 13 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
The United Arab Emirates welcomed 2.7 times as many tourists per resident as Saudi Arabia (2019).
Saudi Arabia: 0.84 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 2.28 (2019)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are practically level.
Saudi Arabia: 100% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are practically level.
Saudi Arabia: 100% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
86% of people in the United Arab Emirates live in cities, versus 85% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 85% (2025) · United Arab Emirates: 86% (2025)
How many phones per person?
The United Arab Emirates has 203 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Saudi Arabia 160.
Saudi Arabia: 160 (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 203 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Saudi Arabia’s railway network is 11 times as long as the United Arab Emirates’.
Saudi Arabia: 2,939 km (2018) · United Arab Emirates: 279 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the United Arab Emirates fly 6.1 times as many passengers per resident as those from Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 1.3 (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 7.91 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 4.5% of the United Arab Emirates, but only 0.5% of Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 0.5% (2023) · United Arab Emirates: 4.5% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Saudi Arabia emits 1% more CO₂ than someone in the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia: 20.4 t (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 20.1 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
8.8% of the United Arab Emirates’ electricity is renewable, versus 2.2% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 2.2% (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 8.8% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in the United Arab Emirates carries 11% more fine dust than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 50.4 µg/m³ (2024) · United Arab Emirates: 55.7 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 35% more likely to be murdered in Saudi Arabia than in the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia: 0.9 per 100k (2019) · United Arab Emirates: 0.7 per 100k (2022)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Saudi Arabia are 3.1 times as deadly as in the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia: 18.5 per 100k (2021) · United Arab Emirates: 5.9 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
The United Arab Emirates is on average 2.0 °C warmer than Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 26.8°C (2016–2025 avg) · United Arab Emirates: 28.8°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Saudi Arabia gets 31% more rain than the United Arab Emirates.
Saudi Arabia: 61 mm (2016–2025 avg) · United Arab Emirates: 47 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Saudi Arabia bigger than the United Arab Emirates?
Saudi Arabia is larger. The United Arab Emirates fits inside Saudi Arabia 22 times.
Which has more people, Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates?
Saudi Arabia has 3.2 times as many people as the United Arab Emirates (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates?
People in the United Arab Emirates live 4.1 years longer than in Saudi Arabia. Life expectancy at birth is 79.0 years in Saudi Arabia and 83.1 in the United Arab Emirates.
Are people taller in Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates?
Men in the United Arab Emirates are 3.4 cm taller than in Saudi Arabia (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
