Saudi workforce rises to 18.2M in Q2 2025

Saudi Arabia’s employed population rose to 18.2 million in the second quarter of 2025, with expatriates making up 77% of the total workforce

The number of people employed in Saudi Arabia reached 18.2 million by the end of the second quarter of 2025, according to labor market statistics released by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT).

Most workers in the Kingdom were employed in the private sector (67.4%), followed by the government sector (6.5%), the public sector (3.4%), and household workers (22.7%).

The number of expatriate workers reached 14.1 million, accounting for 77% of the total workforce. Saudi nationals made up 4.1 million workers, representing 23% of the total.

In terms of education, Saudis holding a bachelor’s degree or an equivalent qualification accounted for 57.6% of the total Saudi workforce during the quarter.

Regionally, Riyadh hosted 45% of employed Saudis, totaling around 1.86 million workers, followed by the Eastern Province with about 18% and Makkah with 17%.

Expatriate workers, excluding household workers, were also mainly concentrated in Riyadh, with around 4.75 million workers.

By age group, the highest share of employed Saudis was among those aged 25 to 29, representing 16% of the total, or around 649,300 workers. The lowest share was recorded among Saudis aged over 65, with around 16,200 workers.

Among expatriates, the largest group was also aged 25 to 29, totaling about 1.87 million workers, or 19% of all foreign employees in the Kingdom.

According to the data, the average monthly wage for Saudi workers during the period was SAR 11,034, compared to SAR 3,933 for expatriate workers.