Arms imports in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Arms imports was 1.11 billion SIPRI trend indicator values in 2024. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2024)
1.11 billion SIPRI trend indicator values
Change on year
down 14.3%
World rank
6th
of 173 countries
All-time high
3.97 billion SIPRI trend indicator values
in 2017
All-time low
5.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values
in 1964
Years of data
64
1960–2024
Arms imports in Saudi Arabia, 1960–2024
Source: Arms Transfers Programme, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Measured in SIPRI trend indicator values.
Analysis
Saudi Arabia recorded 1.11 billion SIPRI trend indicator values for arms imports in 2024.
The figure is down 14.3% on the previous year and down 59.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, arms imports in Saudi Arabia peaked at 3.97 billion SIPRI trend indicator values in 2017 and was at its lowest, 5.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values, in 1964.
That places Saudi Arabia 6th out of 173 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top 10%.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Arms imports in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | SIPRI trend indicator values | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 15.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | — |
| 1961 | 12.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -20.0% |
| 1962 | 22.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +83.3% |
| 1964 | 5.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -77.3% |
| 1965 | 48.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +860.0% |
| 1966 | 227.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +372.9% |
| 1967 | 221.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -2.6% |
| 1968 | 448.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +102.7% |
| 1969 | 416.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -7.1% |
| 1970 | 87.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -79.1% |
| 1971 | 10.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -88.5% |
| 1972 | 120.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +1100.0% |
| 1973 | 192.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +60.0% |
| 1974 | 536.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +179.2% |
| 1975 | 392.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -26.9% |
| 1976 | 702.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +79.1% |
| 1977 | 1.03 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +46.4% |
| 1978 | 1.02 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | -0.5% |
| 1979 | 767.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -25.0% |
| 1980 | 1.08 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +41.5% |
| 1981 | 1.82 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +67.4% |
| 1982 | 2.22 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +22.4% |
| 1983 | 1.82 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | -18.2% |
| 1984 | 824.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -54.7% |
| 1985 | 1.31 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +59.5% |
| 1986 | 2.84 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +116.3% |
| 1987 | 2.01 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | -29.3% |
| 1988 | 784.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -61.0% |
| 1989 | 1.38 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +76.3% |
| 1990 | 2.04 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +47.5% |
| 1991 | 1.04 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | -49.1% |
| 1992 | 1.15 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +10.7% |
| 1993 | 2.35 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +104.9% |
| 1994 | 981.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -58.3% |
| 1995 | 984.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +0.3% |
| 1996 | 1.73 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +75.5% |
| 1997 | 2.79 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +61.6% |
| 1998 | 2.89 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +3.4% |
| 1999 | 1.58 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | -45.3% |
| 2000 | 105.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -93.4% |
| 2001 | 60.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -42.9% |
| 2002 | 560.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +833.3% |
| 2003 | 160.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -71.4% |
| 2004 | 1.16 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +624.4% |
| 2005 | 166.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -85.7% |
| 2006 | 206.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +24.1% |
| 2007 | 227.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +10.2% |
| 2008 | 387.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +70.5% |
| 2009 | 827.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | +113.7% |
| 2010 | 1.11 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +34.0% |
| 2011 | 1.17 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +5.8% |
| 2012 | 810.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | -30.9% |
| 2013 | 1.63 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +101.4% |
| 2014 | 2.71 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +66.2% |
| 2015 | 3.38 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +24.8% |
| 2016 | 2.97 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | -12.1% |
| 2017 | 3.97 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +33.4% |
| 2018 | 3.00 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | -24.3% |
| 2019 | 3.07 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +2.2% |
| 2020 | 2.53 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | -17.6% |
| 2021 | 1.69 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | -33.2% |
| 2022 | 3.06 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | +80.9% |
| 2023 | 1.30 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | -57.6% |
| 2024 | 1.11 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | -14.3% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 1.11 billion SIPRI trend indicator values is above the median for high income countries, which is 148.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values, 7.5× the median. (55 countries reporting)
- Saudi Arabia's 1.11 billion SIPRI trend indicator values is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 45.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values, 24.7× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Arms imports in Saudi Arabia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1972 | +1100.0% | 10.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 120.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values |
| 1965 | +860.0% | 5.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 48.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values |
| 2002 | +833.3% | 60.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 560.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values |
| 2004 | +624.4% | 160.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 1.16 billion SIPRI trend indicator values |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 157.11 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 5.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 448.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 9 |
| 1970s | 485.70 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 10.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 1.03 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.61 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | 784.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 2.84 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.75 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | 981.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 2.89 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | 10 |
| 2000s | 385.70 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 60.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 1.16 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.38 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | 810.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values | 3.97 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.94 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | 1.11 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | 3.06 billion SIPRI trend indicator values | 5 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
- 3 United States 1.21 billion SIPRI trend indicator values compare
- 4 India 1.17 billion SIPRI trend indicator values compare
- 5 Qatar 1.15 billion SIPRI trend indicator values compare
- 7 South Korea 1.01 billion SIPRI trend indicator values compare
- 8 Australia 983.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values compare
- 9 Pakistan 982.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values compare
More public sector data for Saudi Arabia
- Democracy 0 (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected 0 (2025)
- Elected parliament 0 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 0 (2025)
- Competitive elections 0 (2025)
- Universal right to vote 0 (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice 0 (2025)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 31.47 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0009 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate -14.27 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is arms imports in Saudi Arabia?
- Arms imports in Saudi Arabia was 1.11 billion SIPRI trend indicator values in 2024, according to Arms Transfers Programme, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
- What is the highest arms imports recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 3.97 billion SIPRI trend indicator values in 2017.
- What is the lowest arms imports recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 5.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values in 1964.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for arms imports?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 6th out of 173 countries with data for 2024.
- Is arms imports rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 59.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from Arms Transfers Programme, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), published as part of Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 64 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Arms transfers (imports) cover the volume of transfers of major arms through sales and gifts, and those made through manufacturing licenses. Data cover major conventional weapons such as aircraft, armored vehicles, artillery, radar systems, missiles, and ships. Figures are SIPRI Trend Indicator Values (TIVs). A '0' indicates that the volume of deliveries is between 0 and 0.5 million SIPRI TIV.