Saudi unemployment among citizens hits historic low of 6.3% in Q1

Saudi Arabia’s overall unemployment rate, which includes both Saudis and non-Saudis, fell to 2.8% in the first quarter of 2025, according to estimates from the General Authority for Statistics’ Labour Force Survey. This marks a 0.7 percentage point decrease compared to the first quarter of 2024.

The labour force participation rate for the total population reached 68.2%, an increase of 1.8 percentage points compared to the first quarter of 2024, and a yearly increase of 2.2 percentage points from the same period last year.

The unemployment rate for Saudi citizens specifically reached 6.3% in Q1 2025. This represents a 0.7 percentage point decrease from Q4 2024 and a 1.3 percentage point year-on-year decrease compared to Q1 2024.

The employment-to-population ratio for Saudis increased by 0.5 percentage points compared to Q4 2024, reaching 48.0%. It also saw a year-on-year increase of 0.5 percentage points from Q1 2024.

Furthermore, the labour force participation rate for Saudis in Q1 2025 rose by 0.2 percentage points compared to Q4 2024, reaching 51.3%. However, it recorded a slight year-on-year decrease of 0.1 percentage points compared to Q1 2024.