Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Government spending on education as a share of GDP was 4.5% in 2023. ▲ Rising
Government spending on education as a share of GDP in Saudi Arabia, 1981–2023
Source: UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Saudi Arabia recorded 4.5% for government spending on education as a share of gdp in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 12.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, government spending on education as a share of gdp in Saudi Arabia peaked at 8.3% in 1998 and was at its lowest, 3.9%, in 1981.
Saudi Arabia ranks 82nd of 199 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 23 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 5.3% | 3.9% | 6.3% | 5 |
| 1990s | 6.0% | 4.4% | 8.3% | 9 |
| 2000s | 6.4% | 5.1% | 7.7% | 8 |
| 2020s | 4.5% | 4.5% | 4.5% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More education data for Saudi Arabia
- Duration of pre-primary education 3 years (2025)
- Official entrance age to pre-primary education 3 years (2025)
- Population ages 15-64 73.3% (2025)
- Population ages 0-14 23.6% (2025)
- Lower secondary school starting age 12 years (2025)
- Primary school starting age 6 years (2025)
- School enrollment, primary 104.0% (2024)
- Primary education, teachers 244,652 (2024)
- Fertility rate vs. average years of schooling 2.31 live births per woman (2024)
- School enrollment, primary, female 104.1% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is government spending on education as a share of gdp in Saudi Arabia?
- Government spending on education as a share of gdp in Saudi Arabia was 4.5% in 2023, according to UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 8.3% in 1998.
- What is the lowest government spending on education as a share of gdp recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.9% in 1981.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for government spending on education as a share of gdp?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 82nd out of 199 countries with data for 2023.
- Is government spending on education as a share of gdp rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 12.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from UNESCO Institute for Statistics (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Government spending on education as a share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Total annual general government spending on all levels of education, expressed as a percentage of GDP.