The duel
Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Saudi Arabia fits inside the United States 4.6 times.
Saudi Arabia: 2,149,690 km² (2023) · United States: 9,831,510 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
The United States’ coastline is 7.5 times as long as Saudi Arabia’s.
Saudi Arabia: 2,640 km (2026 edition) · United States: 19,924 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
The United States’ highest peak towers 3,190 m above Saudi Arabia’s.
Saudi Arabia: 3,000 m (2026 edition) · United States: 6,190 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
The United States has 9.2 times as many people as Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 37 million (2025) · United States: 342 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
The United States is 2.2 times as densely populated as Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 17 per km² (2025) · United States: 37 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in the United States are 6.3 cm taller than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 170.7 cm (2019) · United States: 176.9 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in the United States are 4.5 cm taller than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 158.8 cm (2019) · United States: 163.3 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in the United States is 8.8 years older than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 29.2 years (2023) · United States: 38 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Saudi Arabia have 0.7 more children on average than in the United States.
Saudi Arabia: 2.31 children per woman (2024) · United States: 1.63 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
18% of people in the United States are 65 or older, versus 3.1% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 3.1% (2025) · United States: 18.4% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
The United States has produced 8.7 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Saudi Arabia none.
Saudi Arabia: 0 (2025) · United States: 8.7 (2025)
How many official languages?
Saudi Arabia and the United States are practically level.
Saudi Arabia: 1 (2026) · United States: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
The United States’ economy is 24 times the size of Saudi Arabia’s.
Saudi Arabia: $1.28 trillion (2025) · United States: $30.8 trillion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
The United States produces 22% more per person than Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: Int$73,784 (2025) · United States: Int$90,027 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Saudi Arabia: no data · United States: 41.8 (2024)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 4.2% in the United States, versus 3.0% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 3% (2025) · United States: 4.2% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Saudi Arabia spends 7.3% of its GDP on the military, the United States 3.4%.
Saudi Arabia: 7.3% (2024) · United States: 3.4% (2024)
How expensive is it?
The United States’ price level (US = 100) is 2.1× Saudi Arabia’s.
Saudi Arabia: 47% (2025) · United States: 100% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
The United States spends 7.4 times as much on health per person as Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: $1,825 (2023) · United States: $13,473 (2023)
How long do people live?
Saudi Arabia and the United States are practically level.
Saudi Arabia: 79 years (2024) · United States: 78.9 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in the United States is 17% more likely to die before turning one than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 4.7 per 1,000 (2024) · United States: 5.5 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
The United States has 8% more doctors per person than Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 3.4 per 1,000 (2023) · United States: 3.7 per 1,000 (2022)
How common is obesity?
42% of adults in the United States are obese, versus 39% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 39.2% (2024) · United States: 41.8% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
16% of adults in the United States smoke, versus 15% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 14.7% (2024) · United States: 15.8% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
Saudi Arabia and the United States are practically level.
Saudi Arabia: 6.82 (2025) · United States: 6.82 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Saudi Arabia: no data · United States: 9.6 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
The United States has 2.1 times as much meat per person as Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 58.1 kg (2023) · United States: 122.1 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
The United States has 287 kcal more food per person per day than Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 3,660 kcal (2023) · United States: 3,947 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in Saudi Arabia put in 336 more hours a year than in the United States.
Saudi Arabia: 2,125 hours (2023) · United States: 1,789 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in the United States went to school 2.3 years longer than in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 11.6 years (2023) · United States: 13.9 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Saudi Arabia welcomed 4 times as many tourists per resident as the United States (2019).
Saudi Arabia: 0.84 (2024) · United States: 0.21 (2024)
How many World Heritage sites?
The United States has 19 more World Heritage sites than Saudi Arabia (27 against 8).
Saudi Arabia: 8 (2026) · United States: 27 (2026)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
100% of people in Saudi Arabia are online, versus 95% in the United States.
Saudi Arabia: 100% (2024) · United States: 95% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
Saudi Arabia and the United States are practically level.
Saudi Arabia: 100% (2024) · United States: 100% (2024)
How many live in cities?
85% of people in Saudi Arabia live in cities, versus 80% in the United States.
Saudi Arabia: 85% (2025) · United States: 80% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Saudi Arabia has 160 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, the United States 113.
Saudi Arabia: 160 (2024) · United States: 113 (2024)
How much railway is there?
The United States’ railway network is 51 times as long as Saudi Arabia’s.
Saudi Arabia: 2,939 km (2018) · United States: 148,553 km (2021)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from the United States fly 2.1 times as many passengers per resident as those from Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 1.3 (2023) · United States: 2.75 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 34% of the United States, but only 0.5% of Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 0.5% (2023) · United States: 33.9% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Saudi Arabia emits 44% more CO₂ than someone in the United States.
Saudi Arabia: 20.4 t (2024) · United States: 14.2 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
26% of the United States’ electricity is renewable, versus 2.2% in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 2.2% (2024) · United States: 25.6% (2025)
How clean is the air?
The air in Saudi Arabia carries 6.7 times as much fine dust as in the United States.
Saudi Arabia: 50.4 µg/m³ (2024) · United States: 7.5 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 6.2 times as likely to be murdered in the United States as in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 0.9 per 100k (2019) · United States: 5.8 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Saudi Arabia are 30% deadlier than in the United States.
Saudi Arabia: 18.5 per 100k (2021) · United States: 14.2 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Saudi Arabia is on average 16.5 °C warmer than the United States.
Saudi Arabia: 26.8°C (2016–2025 avg) · United States: 10.3°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
The United States gets 14 times as much rain as Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia: 61 mm (2016–2025 avg) · United States: 849 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Saudi Arabia bigger than the United States?
The United States is larger. Saudi Arabia fits inside the United States 4.6 times.
Which has more people, Saudi Arabia or the United States?
The United States has 9.2 times as many people as Saudi Arabia (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Saudi Arabia or the United States?
Saudi Arabia and the United States are practically level. Life expectancy at birth is 79.0 years in Saudi Arabia and 78.9 in the United States.
Are people taller in Saudi Arabia or the United States?
Men in the United States are 6.3 cm taller than in Saudi Arabia (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
