Saudi Arabia: Oil rents (% of GDP)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2021, Saudi Arabia's oil rents (% of GDP) rose 7.71 percentage points on 2020 (from 15.98% to 23.69%).

Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1991 to 2020), the average change was −1.01 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 7.84 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.1 standard deviations above that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 42.32 percentage points in 1979 and the biggest yearly fall was 19.45 percentage points in 2009. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2012 to 2021 the straight-line trend is downward, about 2.89 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 65% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2021, Saudi Arabia had the 6th highest value of the 188 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Saudi Arabia in the 2021 ranking

• Iraq — 2nd of 188: 42.79%
• Congo, Rep. — 3rd of 188: 34.38%
• Angola — 4th of 188: 28.27%
• Oman — 6th of 188: 23.54%
• Guyana — 7th of 188: 22.08%
• Azerbaijan — 8th of 188: 20.98%

What this measures

Oil rents are the difference between the value of crude oil production at regional prices and total costs of production.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 52 values

Oil rents (% of GDP) in nearby economies

• Afghanistan — 0.02% (2021)
• Algeria — 14.46% (2021)
• Bahrain — 10.94% (2021)
• Djibouti — 0% (2021)
• Egypt, Arab Rep. — 2.99% (2021)
• Iran, Islamic Rep. — 18.27% (2021)
• Iraq — 42.79% (2021)
• Israel — 0.01% (2021)
• Jordan — 0.01% (2021)
• Kuwait — 27.58% (2020)
• Lebanon — 0% (2021)
• Libya — 56.38% (2021)

More environment data for Saudi Arabia

• Population in largest city — 7.95 million (2025)
• Population in the largest city (% of urban population) — 25.42% (2025)
• Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million — 18.19 million (2025)
• Population in urban agglomerations of more than 1 million (% of total population) — 49.21% (2025)
• Rural population — 5.69 million (2025)
• Rural population (% of total population) — 15.39% (2025)
• Urban population — 31.28 million (2025)
• Urban population (% of total population) — 84.61% (2025)
• Aquaculture production (metric tons) — 161,883 (2024)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Saudi Arabia's oil rents (% of GDP)?

23.69% in 2021, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 1970?

It is down 1.75 percentage points from 25.44% in 1970. The highest value was 87.09% in 1979 and the lowest 15.98% in 2020.

How does Saudi Arabia rank?

6th highest of 188 economies with data for 2021.

Is the latest change in oil rents (% of GDP) unusual for Saudi Arabia?

In 2021, Saudi Arabia's oil rents (% of GDP) rose 7.71 percentage points on 2020 (from 15.98% to 23.69%). Across the 30 yearly changes before that (1991 to 2020), the average change was −1.01 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 7.84 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 1.1 standard deviations above that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator NY.GDP.PETR.RT.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: The Changing Wealth of Nations, World Bank (WB), uri: https://www.worldbank.org/en/publication/changing-wealth-of-nations/data, note: World Bank staff estimates based on sources and methods described in the World Bank's The Changing Wealth of Nations., publisher: World Bank (WB); Staff estimates, Wo… Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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