Quality of life comparison
If you lived in United Arab Emirates instead of Saudi Arabia, you would:
Health
live 4.1 years longer
In Saudi Arabia, the average life expectancy is 79 years (77 years for men, 81 years for women) as of 2024. In United Arab Emirates, that number is 83 years (82 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024.
be 21.2% less likely to be obese
In Saudi Arabia, 40.1% of adults are obese as of 2024. In United Arab Emirates, that number is 31.6% of people as of 2024.
have 10.8% more access to essential health services
Saudi Arabia scores 74 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. United Arab Emirates scores 82 as of 2021.
have 12.2% fewer doctors per person
Saudi Arabia has 34.1 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. United Arab Emirates has 29.9 as of 2023.
be 80.0% more likely to die by suicide
Saudi Arabia has a suicide rate of 0.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In United Arab Emirates, it is 1.7 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Economy
be 28.6% less likely to be unemployed
In Saudi Arabia, 3.0% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In United Arab Emirates, that number is 2.2% as of 2025.
make 45.6% more money
Saudi Arabia has a GDP per capita of $34,537 as of 2025, while in United Arab Emirates, the GDP per capita is $50,274 as of 2024.
Life
be 57.1% less likely to die during childbirth
In Saudi Arabia, approximately 7.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In United Arab Emirates, 3.0 women do as of 2023.
be 19.1% less likely to die during infancy
In Saudi Arabia, approximately 4.7 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In United Arab Emirates, on the other hand, 3.8 children do as of 2024.
have 40.5% fewer children
In Saudi Arabia, there are approximately 16.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In United Arab Emirates, there are 9.8 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 13.2% less on education
Saudi Arabia spends 4.5% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. United Arab Emirates spends 3.9% of total GDP on education as of 2021.
spend 12.7% less on healthcare
Saudi Arabia spends 5.7% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In United Arab Emirates, that number is 5.0% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 50.1% less coastline
Saudi Arabia has a total of 2,640 km of coastline. In United Arab Emirates, that number is 1,318 km.
Safety
be 26.6% less likely to be murdered
Saudi Arabia has a homicide rate of 0.9 per 100,000 people as of 2019. In United Arab Emirates, that number is 0.7 per 100,000 as of 2022.
be 68.1% less likely to die in a road accident
In Saudi Arabia, road accidents kill 18.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In United Arab Emirates, they kill 5.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
use 28.3% more electricity
Saudi Arabia uses 11,911 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. United Arab Emirates uses 15,285 kWh as of 2023.
live with 55.0% more strain on fresh water
Saudi Arabia withdraws 974% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. United Arab Emirates withdraws 1510% as of 2022.
Environment
be 23.1% less likely to die from air pollution
In Saudi Arabia, air pollution causes 91.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In United Arab Emirates, it causes 70.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2019–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Saudi Arabia vs. United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates: At a glance
How big is United Arab Emirates compared to Saudi Arabia? See an in-depth size comparison.