🇮🇶 Iraq vs 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
33 indicators below, published by both countries and set side by side, with 2 more published for only one of them. They differ most on protected areas, where Saudi Arabia’s figure is 12.3× higher.
Side by Side
Each bar is scaled against the larger of the two values, so the gap is visible rather than only stated.
Bars compare magnitude only. A larger value is not a better one — several of these indicators have no better direction, and for others the lower figure is the favourable one.
Every Shared Indicator
33 indicators published for both countries. Bold marks the larger of the two values — larger is not always better. Ranks are out of the countries that report each indicator.
| Indicator | Iraq | Saudi Arabia | Iraq vs Saudi Arabia |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 47,020,77434th of 240 | 36,973,55543rd of 240 | 27% higher |
| Annual Growth Rate | +2.10%46th of 240 | +4.63%2nd of 240 | 55% lower |
| Population Density/km² | 104/km²111th of 240 | 16/km²214th of 240 | 6.6× higher |
| Land Areakm² | 434,130 km²57th of 240 | 2,149,690 km²12th of 240 | 5.0× lower |
| Urban Population | 69.9%105th of 240 | 84.6%55th of 240 | 17% lower |
| GDP per Capita | $5,410158th of 240 | $34,53758th of 240 | 6.4× lower |
| GDP Growth | −2.2%204th of 210 | +4.5%63rd of 210 | 6.7 points apart |
| Life Expectancyyears | 72.4 years153rd of 240 | 79.0 years71st of 240 | 8% lower |
| Fertility Ratebirths per woman | 3.22 births per woman51st of 240 | 2.31 births per woman87th of 240 | 40% higher |
| Birth Rateper 1,000 | 25.6 per 1,00048th of 213 | 16.5 per 1,00091st of 213 | 55% higher |
| Death Rateper 1,000 | 4.2 per 1,000203rd of 213 | 2.3 per 1,000208th of 213 | 1.8× higher |
| Infant Mortalityper 1,000 live births | 20.1 per 1,000 live births126th of 194 | 4.7 per 1,000 live births46th of 194 | 4.3× higher |
| Unemployment Rate | 15.5%172nd of 186 | 3.0%41st of 186 | 5.1× higher |
| Inflation Rate | 0.3%170th of 191 | 2.1%127th of 191 | 6.9× lower |
| Health Spendingof GDP | 5.5% of GDP116th of 192 | 5.7% of GDP112th of 192 | 3% lower |
| Physiciansper 1,000 | 1.02 per 1,000127th of 206 | 3.41 per 1,00049th of 206 | 3.3× lower |
| Hospital Bedsper 1,000 | 1.06 per 1,000151st of 199 | 2.41 per 1,00098th of 199 | 56% lower |
| Literacy Rate | 84.1%120th of 175 | 97.9%51st of 175 | 14% lower |
| Education Spendingof GDP | 3.6% of GDP127th of 202 | 4.5% of GDP83rd of 202 | 21% lower |
| School Enrollmentgross, secondary | 50.6% gross, secondary174th of 207 | 110.7% gross, secondary25th of 207 | 54% lower |
| Renewable Energyof final consumption | 1.1% of final consumption186th of 211 | 0.1% of final consumption201st of 211 | 1.0 points apart |
| Forest Coverageof land area | 1.9% of land area185th of 211 | 0.5% of land area198th of 211 | 4.2× higher |
| Internet Penetration | 81.5%104th of 211 | 100.0%1st of 211 | 19% lower |
| Mobile Subscriptionsper 100 people | 100.1 per 100 people137th of 212 | 159.5 per 100 people24th of 212 | 37% lower |
| Maternal Mortalityper 100,000 live births | 66 per 100,000 live births110th of 193 | 7 per 100,000 live births34th of 193 | 9.4× higher |
| Military Spendingof GDP | 2.36% of GDP48th of 163 | 7.30% of GDP5th of 163 | 3.1× lower |
| Protected Areasof land area | 1.5% of land area201st of 211 | 18.5% of land area97th of 211 | 17.0 points apart |
| Median Ageyears | 20.8 years192nd of 240 | 29.6 years140th of 240 | 30% lower |
| Mean Years of Schoolingyears | 8.3 years98th of 148 | 9.9 years70th of 148 | 16% lower |
| Human Development Index | 0.695125th of 192 | 0.90037th of 192 | 23% lower |
| Happiness Index/ 10 | 5.21/ 10101st of 164 | 6.82/ 1022nd of 164 | 24% lower |
| CO₂ Emissionstonnes per capita | 5.07 tonnes per capita66th of 212 | 20.38 tonnes per capita6th of 212 | 4.0× lower |
| Obesity Rate | 36.8%32nd of 198 | 39.2%25th of 198 | 6% lower |
Values are each country’s most recent published observation, so the two sides of a row may be from different years — the country pages show the year for each. Bold marks the larger of the two, which is not always the better one.
Not Comparable
Published for one country but not the other, so no comparison is shown.
- Poverty Rate — 17.5% for Iraq, not published for Saudi Arabia
- Gini Index — 29.8 for Iraq, not published for Saudi Arabia
Population, 1950–2100
Observed to 2024, then the UN medium-variant projection.
| Series | Year | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Iraq | 1950 | 5.65M |
| Iraq | 1975 | 11.5M |
| Iraq | 2000 | 24.4M |
| Iraq | 2025 | 47M |
| Iraq | 2050 | 71.9M |
| Iraq | 2075 | 91.1M |
| Iraq | 2100 | 100.6M |
| Saudi Arabia | 1950 | 1.7M |
| Saudi Arabia | 1975 | 4.56M |
| Saudi Arabia | 2000 | 16.2M |
| Saudi Arabia | 2025 | 34.6M |
| Saudi Arabia | 2050 | 47.7M |
| Saudi Arabia | 2075 | 59.7M |
| Saudi Arabia | 2100 | 71M |
Reading This Comparison
Size is not the same as rate
Totals and per-capita measures answer different questions. A country can have a far larger economy and a far lower GDP per capita at the same time — both facts are in the table.
Mind the vintages
Each value is the latest available for that country, which is not always the same year on both sides. For indicators that move slowly this rarely matters; for inflation or GDP growth it can.