Kuwait vs Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia is 126 times larger than Kuwait. Kuwait would fit into Saudi Arabia about 126 times.
KuwaitSaudi ArabiaKuwait moved onto Saudi Arabia · Equal-area projection
0.01×
Kuwait is 0.01× the area of Saudi Arabia. Put the other way, Saudi Arabia is 126× the size of Kuwait.
 Kuwait |  Saudi Arabia | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaSaudi Arabia: 126× the area | 17,818 km²#153 of 194 | 2,250,000 km²#12 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 2 | 7 |
| People | ||
| PopulationSaudi Arabia: 7.6× the population | 4,865,298#126 of 194 · 2025 | 36,973,555#43 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityKuwait: 16.6× the density | 273 / km²#32 of 194 | 16 / km²#176 of 194 |
| Urban populationKuwait: 1.18× the urban share | 100%#1 of 192 · 2025 | 85%#32 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateSaudi Arabia: 1.48× the births per woman | 1.56 per woman#127 of 192 · 2024 | 2.31 per woman#79 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthSaudi Arabia: 5.28 points higher | −0.65%#184 of 192 · 2025 | +4.63%#2 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateSaudi Arabia: 1.65× the birth rate | 10.0 per 1,000#140 of 192 · 2024 | 16.5 per 1,000#88 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateSaudi Arabia: 1.53× the death rate | 1.5 per 1,000#190 of 192 · 2024 | 2.3 per 1,000#187 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Saudi Arabia: 5.6 points higher | 18.0%#128 of 192 · 2025 | 23.6%#101 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Kuwait: 0.1 points higher | 3.2%#161 of 192 · 2025 | 3.1%#166 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationKuwait: 5.6 per 1,000 higher | +8.8 per 1,000#10 of 192 · 2025 | +3.2 per 1,000#29 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadKuwait: 11.5× the refugees for its size | 0.69 per 1,000#68 of 190 · 2025 | 0.06 per 1,000#129 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyKuwait: 5.6 years longer | 84.6 years#3 of 192 · 2024 | 79.0 years#45 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityKuwait: 1.49× the infant mortality | 7.0 per 1,000 births#132 of 191 · 2024 | 4.7 per 1,000 births#144 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsSaudi Arabia: 1.5× the doctors per person | 2.27 per 1,000#79 of 178 · 2020 | 3.41 per 1,000#48 of 178 · 2023 |
| University enrolmentSaudi Arabia: 1.62× the university enrolment | 51.9%#74 of 145 · 2021 | 83.9%#18 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexSaudi Arabia: 0.048 higher | 0.852#51 of 190 · 2023 | 0.900#36 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaKuwait: 1.14× the income per person | $41,110#27 of 185 · 2024 | $36,070#33 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPSaudi Arabia: 8.12× the economy | $157.21B2025 | $1.28T2025 |
| Income group | High income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Saudi Arabia: 1.31× the output per person | $56,468#37 of 184 · 2025 | $73,784#19 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthSaudi Arabia: 1.8 points higher | +2.7%#111 of 187 · 2025 | +4.5%#55 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationKuwait: 0.4 points higher | +2.4%#103 of 176 · 2025 | +2.0%#120 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentSaudi Arabia: 1.36× the unemployment | 2.2%#158 of 178 · 2025 | 3.0%#138 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in agricultureSaudi Arabia: 0.6 points higher | 1.9% of jobs#159 of 178 · 2025 | 2.5% of jobs#152 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryKuwait: 1.5 points higher | 24.6% of jobs#44 of 178 · 2025 | 23.1% of jobs#54 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesSaudi Arabia: 0.9 points higher | 73.5% of jobs#36 of 178 · 2025 | 74.4% of jobs#31 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentSaudi Arabia: 2.3 points higher | 0.3% of GDP#154 of 184 · 2025 | 2.6% of GDP#73 of 184 · 2025 |
| ExportsKuwait: 26.1 points higher | 55.8% of GDP#35 of 168 · 2024 | 29.7% of GDP#104 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingSaudi Arabia: 1.38× the military spending | 4.7% of GDP#11 of 155 · 2025 | 6.5% of GDP#7 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersAbout the same share online | 100%#1 of 184 · 2025 | 100%#1 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsKuwait: 1.05× the mobile subscriptions | 168 per 100#16 of 191 · 2023 | 160 per 100#20 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaSaudi Arabia: 3.25× the forest share | 0% of land#185 of 192 · 2024 | 1% of land#175 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personKuwait: 1.28× the CO₂ per person | 23.7 t a year#4 of 185 · 2024 | 18.5 t a year#8 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyThe same | 0.1%#183 of 190 · 2021 | 0.1%#183 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityThe same | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Saudi Arabia: 1.18× the air pollution | 62.3 µg/m³#6 of 191 · 2023 | 73.5 µg/m³#2 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landSaudi Arabia: 1.4 points higher | 17.1% of land#98 of 191 · 2025 | 18.5% of land#90 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landSaudi Arabia: 1.6 points higher | 0.4% of land#183 of 190 · 2024 | 2.0% of land#161 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressKuwait: 3.95× the water stress | 3,850.5%#1 of 176 · 2022 | 974.2%#3 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationKuwait: 2.05× the rain and snow | 121 mm#171 of 180 · 2022 | 59 mm#178 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityKuwait: 0.40 higher | +0.42#75 of 193 · 2025 | +0.02#103 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionSaudi Arabia: 0.53 higher | +0.28#69 of 193 · 2025 | +0.81#41 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateSaudi Arabia: 4.5× the homicide rate | 0.2 per 100,000#141 of 146 · 2020 | 0.9 per 100,000#110 of 146 · 2019 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Constitutional monarchyconstitutional monarchy (emirate) | Absolute monarchy |
| Member of | OPEC | G20, OPEC |
| Capital | Kuwait City | Riyadh |
| Currency | Kuwaiti dinar (KWD) | Saudi riyal (SAR) |
| Official languages | Arabic | Arabic |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+3 | UTC+3 |
| Calling code | +965 | +966 |
| Region | Western Asia, Asia | Western Asia, Asia |
Area: Wikidata. Population, income, health, economy, environment and governance: World Bank. Human Development Index: UNDP. Government: CIA World Factbook. Ranks among the 194 independent states. All sources
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Kuwait sits at about 29° N and is stretched to 1.32× its true area; Saudi Arabia at 24° N is stretched to 1.2×. Here the two are distorted about the same amount, so Mercator gets this pair roughly right. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Kuwait bigger than Saudi Arabia?
- No. Kuwait is 126 times smaller than Saudi Arabia. Kuwait covers 17,818 km² and Saudi Arabia covers 2,250,000 km².
- How many times does Kuwait fit into Saudi Arabia?
- About 126 times: Saudi Arabia has 126× the area of Kuwait.
- Why do Kuwait and Saudi Arabia look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Kuwait is drawn about 1.32× its true area there and Saudi Arabia about 1.2×. For this pair the distortion is similar, so Mercator gets the comparison roughly right. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Kuwait or Saudi Arabia?
- Saudi Arabia: 36,973,555 people against 4,865,298. Density: Kuwait 273 per km², Saudi Arabia 16 per km².
- Which is richer, Kuwait or Saudi Arabia?
- By gross national income per person, Kuwait: $41,110 against $36,070 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2024) — 1.14× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Kuwait or Saudi Arabia?
- In Kuwait: life expectancy at birth is 84.6 years, against 79.0 — 5.6 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Kuwait and Saudi Arabia have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Kuwait: constitutional monarchy; Saudi Arabia: absolute monarchy.