The duel
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
The United Kingdom fits inside Saudi Arabia 8.8 times.
Saudi Arabia: 2,149,690 km² (2023) · United Kingdom: 243,610 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
The United Kingdom’s coastline is 4.7 times as long as Saudi Arabia’s.
Saudi Arabia: 2,640 km (2026 edition) · United Kingdom: 12,429 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Saudi Arabia’s highest peak towers 1,655 m above the United Kingdom’s.
Saudi Arabia: 3,000 m (2026 edition) · United Kingdom: 1,345 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
The United Kingdom has 88% more people than Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 37 million (2025) · United Kingdom: 69.5 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
The United Kingdom is 17 times as densely populated as Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 17 per km² (2025) · United Kingdom: 287 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in the United Kingdom are 7.5 cm taller than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 170.7 cm (2019) · United Kingdom: 178.2 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in the United Kingdom are 5.1 cm taller than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 158.8 cm (2019) · United Kingdom: 163.9 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in the United Kingdom is 11 years older than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 29.2 years (2023) · United Kingdom: 39.8 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Saudi Arabia have 0.8 more children on average than in the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 2.31 children per woman (2024) · United Kingdom: 1.55 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
20% of people in the United Kingdom are 65 or older, versus 3.1% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 3.1% (2025) · United Kingdom: 19.7% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
The United Kingdom has produced 15.8 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Saudi Arabia 0.0.
Saudi Arabia: 0 (2025) · United Kingdom: 15.8 (2025)
How many official languages?
Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom are practically level.
Saudi Arabia: 1 (2026) · United Kingdom: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
The United Kingdom’s economy is 3.1 times the size of Saudi Arabia’s.
Saudi Arabia: $1.28 trillion (2025) · United Kingdom: $4 trillion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Saudi Arabia produces 14% more per person than the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: Int$73,784 (2025) · United Kingdom: Int$64,607 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Saudi Arabia: no data · United Kingdom: 32.4 (2021)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 4.7% in the United Kingdom, versus 3.0% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 3% (2025) · United Kingdom: 4.7% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Saudi Arabia spends 7.3% of its GDP on the military, the United Kingdom 2.3%.
Saudi Arabia: 7.3% (2024) · United Kingdom: 2.3% (2024)
How expensive is it?
The United Kingdom’s price level (US = 100) is 1.9× Saudi Arabia’s.
Saudi Arabia: 47% (2025) · United Kingdom: 89% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The United Kingdom spends 3.2 times as much on health per person as Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: $1,825 (2023) · United Kingdom: $5,860 (2024)
How long do people live?
People in the United Kingdom live 2.4 years longer than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 79 years (2024) · United Kingdom: 81.4 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Saudi Arabia is 15% more likely to die before turning one than in the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 4.7 per 1,000 (2024) · United Kingdom: 4.1 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Saudi Arabia has 3% more doctors per person than the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 3.4 per 1,000 (2023) · United Kingdom: 3.3 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is obesity?
39% of adults in Saudi Arabia are obese, versus 29% in the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 39.2% (2024) · United Kingdom: 29.2% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
15% of adults in Saudi Arabia smoke, versus 13% in the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 14.7% (2024) · United Kingdom: 12.8% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Saudi Arabia rate their lives 0.12 points higher than in the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 6.82 (2025) · United Kingdom: 6.69 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Saudi Arabia: no data · United Kingdom: 10.4 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
The United Kingdom has 45% more meat per person than Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 58.1 kg (2023) · United Kingdom: 84.4 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Saudi Arabia has 225 kcal more food per person per day than the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 3,660 kcal (2023) · United Kingdom: 3,435 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in Saudi Arabia put in 602 more hours a year than in the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 2,125 hours (2023) · United Kingdom: 1,523 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in the United Kingdom went to school 1.9 years longer than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 11.6 years (2023) · United Kingdom: 13.5 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Saudi Arabia welcomed 53% more tourists per resident than the United Kingdom (2019).
Saudi Arabia: 0.84 (2024) · United Kingdom: 0.55 (2024)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
100% of people in Saudi Arabia are online, versus 95% in the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 100% (2024) · United Kingdom: 95% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom are practically level.
Saudi Arabia: 100% (2024) · United Kingdom: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
85% of people in Saudi Arabia live in cities, versus 83% in the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 85% (2025) · United Kingdom: 83% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Saudi Arabia has 160 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, the United Kingdom 122.
Saudi Arabia: 160 (2024) · United Kingdom: 122 (2024)
How much railway is there?
The United Kingdom’s railway network is 5.5 times as long as Saudi Arabia’s.
Saudi Arabia: 2,939 km (2018) · United Kingdom: 16,179 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the United Kingdom fly 32% more passengers per resident than those from Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 1.3 (2023) · United Kingdom: 1.71 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 13% of the United Kingdom, but only 0.5% of Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 0.5% (2023) · United Kingdom: 13.3% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Saudi Arabia emits 4.5 times as much CO₂ as someone in the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 20.4 t (2024) · United Kingdom: 4.5 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
52% of the United Kingdom’s electricity is renewable, versus 2.2% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 2.2% (2024) · United Kingdom: 52% (2025)
How clean is the air?
The air in Saudi Arabia carries 5.7 times as much fine dust as in the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 50.4 µg/m³ (2024) · United Kingdom: 8.8 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 20% more likely to be murdered in the United Kingdom than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 0.9 per 100k (2019) · United Kingdom: 1.1 per 100k (2021)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Saudi Arabia are 7.7 times as deadly as in the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 18.5 per 100k (2021) · United Kingdom: 2.4 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Saudi Arabia is on average 16.9 °C warmer than the United Kingdom.
Saudi Arabia: 26.8°C (2016–2025 avg) · United Kingdom: 9.9°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
The United Kingdom gets 17 times as much rain as Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 61 mm (2016–2025 avg) · United Kingdom: 1,070 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Saudi Arabia bigger than the United Kingdom?
Saudi Arabia is larger. The United Kingdom fits inside Saudi Arabia 8.8 times.
Which has more people, Saudi Arabia or the United Kingdom?
The United Kingdom has 88% more people than Saudi Arabia (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Saudi Arabia or the United Kingdom?
People in the United Kingdom live 2.4 years longer than in Saudi Arabia. Life expectancy at birth is 79.0 years in Saudi Arabia and 81.4 in the United Kingdom.
Are people taller in Saudi Arabia or the United Kingdom?
Men in the United Kingdom are 7.5 cm taller than in Saudi Arabia (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
