Saudi Arabia vs United Arab Emirates: Share of population living in urban areas projected to 2050
Saudi Arabia
84.6%
in 2025
United Arab Emirates
86.0%
in 2025
Saudi Arabia rank
57th
United Arab Emirates rank
54th
Share of population living in urban areas projected to 2050 over time
- Saudi Arabia
- United Arab Emirates
How they compare
United Arab Emirates currently reports 86.0% against 84.6% in Saudi Arabia, a difference of 1.4%.
The two have swapped places 3 times across 108 shared years of data; in 1000 it was Saudi Arabia ahead.
Saudi Arabia ranks 57th and United Arab Emirates ranks 54th of 238 countries.
Across the 40 decades both report, Saudi Arabia averaged higher in 19 and United Arab Emirates in 21.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Saudi Arabia | United Arab Emirates | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1000s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1100s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1200s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1300s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1400s | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.0% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1500s | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.1% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1600s | 0.7% | 0.4% | 0.3% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1700s | 2.2% | 1.3% | 0.9% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1710s | 2.5% | 1.3% | 1.1% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1720s | 2.7% | 1.6% | 1.1% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1730s | 3.0% | 1.8% | 1.1% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1740s | 3.2% | 2.1% | 1.1% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1750s | 3.5% | 2.5% | 1.0% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1760s | 3.9% | 2.9% | 1.0% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1770s | 4.2% | 3.4% | 0.8% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1780s | 4.7% | 4.0% | 0.7% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1790s | 5.1% | 4.6% | 0.5% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1800s | 5.6% | 5.4% | 0.2% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1810s | 6.1% | 6.3% | 0.2% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1820s | 6.7% | 7.3% | 0.7% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1830s | 7.3% | 8.6% | 1.2% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1840s | 8.0% | 10.0% | 2.0% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1850s | 8.8% | 11.7% | 2.9% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1860s | 9.6% | 13.6% | 4.0% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1870s | 10.6% | 15.9% | 5.3% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1880s | 11.6% | 18.5% | 7.0% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1890s | 12.7% | 21.6% | 9.0% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1900s | 13.9% | 25.2% | 11.4% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1910s | 15.2% | 29.4% | 14.2% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1920s | 16.6% | 34.3% | 17.7% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1930s | 18.2% | 40.0% | 21.8% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1940s | 19.9% | 46.7% | 26.8% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1950s | 25.3% | 64.2% | 38.9% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1960s | 38.6% | 77.3% | 38.7% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1970s | 57.4% | 82.8% | 25.5% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1980s | 72.0% | 79.8% | 7.8% | United Arab Emirates |
| 1990s | 78.6% | 78.5% | 0.2% | Saudi Arabia |
| 2000s | 80.9% | 81.5% | 0.6% | United Arab Emirates |
| 2010s | 82.9% | 84.2% | 1.4% | United Arab Emirates |
| 2020s | 84.2% | 85.6% | 1.4% | United Arab Emirates |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher share of population living in urban areas projected to 2050, Saudi Arabia or United Arab Emirates?
- United Arab Emirates, at 86.0% against 84.6% in Saudi Arabia as of 2025.
- What is the difference in share of population living in urban areas projected to 2050 between Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates?
- 1.4%, with United Arab Emirates ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates?
- 108 years are reported by both, from 1000 to 2025.
- How do Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates rank globally for share of population living in urban areas projected to 2050?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 57th and United Arab Emirates ranks 54th of 238 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- HYDE (2023); United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Share of population living in urban areas projected to 2050. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Share of the population living in urban areas, combining UN estimates with modeled historical data.