Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) was 41.9% in 2025. ▲ Rising
Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) in Saudi Arabia, 1992–2025
Source: Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
Saudi Arabia recorded 41.9% for ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) in 2025.
The figure is up 4.7% on the previous year and up 52.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) in Saudi Arabia peaked at 43.6% in 2021 and was at its lowest, 18.1%, in 1992.
Saudi Arabia ranks 179th of 196 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 24 years of available data.
Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 18.1% | — |
| 1999 | 22.9% | +26.5% |
| 2000 | 21.1% | -7.8% |
| 2001 | 20.9% | -1.3% |
| 2002 | 21.1% | +1.0% |
| 2006 | 25.0% | +18.6% |
| 2007 | 24.4% | -2.6% |
| 2008 | 23.9% | -1.8% |
| 2009 | 23.4% | -2.0% |
| 2011 | 25.8% | +10.2% |
| 2012 | 26.1% | +1.2% |
| 2013 | 25.7% | -1.9% |
| 2014 | 26.1% | +1.7% |
| 2015 | 27.6% | +5.7% |
| 2016 | 28.4% | +2.9% |
| 2017 | 25.6% | -9.7% |
| 2018 | 27.9% | +8.8% |
| 2019 | 30.6% | +9.7% |
| 2020 | 37.0% | +20.9% |
| 2021 | 43.6% | +18.0% |
| 2022 | 43.3% | -0.9% |
| 2023 | 41.4% | -4.3% |
| 2024 | 40.0% | -3.3% |
| 2025 | 41.9% | +4.7% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 41.9% is below the median for high income countries, which is 85.1%, 49% of the median. (79 countries reporting)
- Saudi Arabia's 41.9% is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 34.6%, 1.2× the median. (21 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 20.5% | 18.1% | 22.9% | 2 |
| 2000s | 22.8% | 20.9% | 25.0% | 7 |
| 2010s | 27.1% | 25.6% | 30.6% | 9 |
| 2020s | 41.2% | 37.0% | 43.6% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More work & labour data for Saudi Arabia
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual 0.6339 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth 0.5946 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth 0.6842 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -1.31 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 0.5985 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 40,709 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 4,348 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 31,198 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 39,809 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 71,007 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) in Saudi Arabia?
- Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) in Saudi Arabia was 41.9% in 2025, according to Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 43.6% in 2021.
- What is the lowest ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 18.1% in 1992.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%)?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 179th out of 196 countries with data for 2025.
- Is ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 52.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from Labour Force Statistics database (LFS), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate (%) (national estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 24 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Ratio of female to male labor force participation rate is the proportion of female labor force participation relative to male labor force participation. The labor force participation rate is the labor force as a percent of the population ages 15 and older. The labor force is the sum of all persons of working age who are employed and those who are unemployed.