Largest cities in Saudi Arabia by population
The 30 cities the United Nations Demographic Yearbook 2024 lists for Saudi Arabia: the capital and every city of 100,000 or more, with the latest figure the country reported. The largest is Riyadh with 6,924,566 people.
Who runs cities in Saudi Arabia?
Municipalities (285) and municipal councils: Mayor (head of municipality) appointed; council two-thirds elected, one-third appointed (2014 Municipal Councils Law). Councils monitor and approve plans and budgets; municipalities handle planning, roads, cleaning and markets under the Ministry of Municipalities and Housing.
How local power works in Saudi Arabia · Level 3: local councils worldwide
| # | City | Population | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Riyadh (capital) | 6,924,566 | 9 May 2022 |
| 2 | Jiddah | 3,712,917 | 9 May 2022 |
| 3 | Makkah | 2,385,509 | 9 May 2022 |
| 4 | Al-Madinah | 1,411,599 | 9 May 2022 |
| 5 | Ad-Dammam | 1,386,166 | 9 May 2022 |
| 6 | Tabuk | 594,350 | 9 May 2022 |
| 7 | Buraydah | 571,169 | 9 May 2022 |
| 8 | At-Ta'if | 563,282 | 9 May 2022 |
| 9 | Khamis Mushayt | 535,065 | 9 May 2022 |
| 10 | Ha'il | 448,623 | 9 May 2022 |
| 11 | Al-Hufuf | 430,105 | 9 May 2022 |
| 12 | Al-Khubar | 409,549 | 9 May 2022 |
| 13 | Hafar al-Batin | 387,096 | 9 May 2022 |
| 14 | Najran | 381,431 | 9 May 2022 |
| 15 | Abha | 334,290 | 9 May 2022 |
| 16 | Al-Jubayl | 302,446 | 9 May 2022 |
| 17 | Al-Mubarraz | 299,501 | 9 May 2022 |
| 18 | Al-Seeh | 295,462 | 9 May 2022 |
| 19 | Yanbu al-Bahr | 258,777 | 9 May 2022 |
| 20 | Ath-Thuqbah | 248,888 | 9 May 2022 |
| 21 | Sekaka | 204,174 | 9 May 2022 |
| 22 | Ar'ar | 199,247 | 9 May 2022 |
| 23 | Unayzah | 183,319 | 9 May 2022 |
| 24 | Jizan | 173,919 | 9 May 2022 |
| 25 | Jubail Industrial City | 172,233 | 9 May 2022 |
| 26 | Al-Hawiyah | 171,610 | 9 May 2022 |
| 27 | Al-Qurrayyat | 167,080 | 9 May 2022 |
| 28 | Al-Zahrani | 143,936 | 9 May 2022 |
| 29 | Tarout | 117,646 | 9 May 2022 |
| 30 | Bishah | 115,537 | 9 May 2022 |
Countries define a city in different ways (the city proper, or the wider urban area) and report in different years, so cities in different countries are not always comparable.
More on Saudi Arabia: official statistics · government and power · regions
Sources
- United Nations Statistics Division: Demographic Yearbook 2024, Table 8: Population of capital cities and cities of 100 000 or more inhabitants, latest available year, 2005-2024, read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0c6784df022e…)
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