Compensation of employees in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia: Compensation of employees was 48.5% in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
48.5%
Change on year
down 3.4%
World rank
9th
of 155 countries
All-time high
59.6%
in 2011
All-time low
48.2%
in 2014
Years of data
14
2010–2023

Compensation of employees in Saudi Arabia, 2010–2023

02040602010201620232010: 59.5 % of expense2011: 59.6 % of expense2012: 52.9 % of expense2013: 52.1 % of expense2014: 48.2 % of expense2015: 57.5 % of expense2016: 58.8 % of expense2017: 58.2 % of expense2018: 54.3 % of expense2019: 56.7 % of expense2020: 53.7 % of expense2021: 53.8 % of expense2022: 50.3 % of expense2023: 48.5 % of expense

Source: Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in % of expense.

Analysis

In 2023, compensation of employees in Saudi Arabia stood at 48.5%.

That represents a change of down 3.4% on the previous year and down 6.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, compensation of employees in Saudi Arabia peaked at 59.6% in 2011 and was at its lowest, 48.2%, in 2014.

Saudi Arabia ranks 9th of 155 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 14 years of available data.

Compensation of employees in Saudi Arabia, year by year

Annual values for Compensation of employees (% of expense) in Saudi Arabia, 2010 to 2023.
Year % of expense Change
2010 59.5%
2011 59.6% +0.2%
2012 52.9% -11.2%
2013 52.1% -1.7%
2014 48.2% -7.3%
2015 57.5% +19.2%
2016 58.8% +2.2%
2017 58.2% -1.1%
2018 54.3% -6.7%
2019 56.7% +4.5%
2020 53.7% -5.3%
2021 53.8% +0.1%
2022 50.3% -6.5%
2023 48.5% -3.4%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2010s 55.8% 48.2% 59.6% 10
2020s 51.6% 48.5% 53.8% 4

Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia

  1. 6 Central African Republic 49.9% compare
  2. 7 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 49.8% compare
  3. 8 Honduras 48.6% compare
  4. 10 Burundi 48.1% compare
  5. 11 Madagascar 47.9% compare
  6. 12 Solomon Islands 47.3% compare

See the full ranking of 196 places →

More public sector data for Saudi Arabia

All data for Saudi Arabia →

Frequently asked questions

What is compensation of employees in Saudi Arabia?
Compensation of employees in Saudi Arabia was 48.5% in 2023, according to Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
What is the highest compensation of employees recorded in Saudi Arabia?
The highest recorded value was 59.6% in 2011.
What is the lowest compensation of employees recorded in Saudi Arabia?
The lowest recorded value was 48.2% in 2014.
How does Saudi Arabia rank for compensation of employees?
Saudi Arabia ranks 9th out of 155 countries with data for 2023.
Is compensation of employees rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
Over the last ten years it is down 6.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
The figures come from Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Compensation of employees (% of expense). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Compensation of employees in Saudi Arabia. Statizoid, drawing on Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Retrieved 03 September 2026, from https://public-sector.statizoid.com/stat/compensation-of-employees-percent-of-expense/saudi-arabia/

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About this data

Indicator
Compensation of employees (% of expense)
Unit
% of expense
Source
Government Finance Statistics Yearbook and data files, International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
196 places, 5,286 data points, 1972–2024
Last refreshed

Compensation of employees is defined as the total remuneration, in cash or in kind, payable by an enterprise to an employee in return for work done by the latter during the accounting period. This indicator is expressed as percentage of total expenses which is any decrease in net worth resulting from a transaction.