Is Saudi Arabia a good place to live for remote workers?

Saudi Arabia scores 61/100 on our equal-weighted livability composite (internet 155.4 Mbps, safety 94, healthcare 83, air quality 11, english 55) — rank 90 of 167. Rapidly opening up; dust-driven air quality among the region's tougher aspects.

How fast is the internet in Saudi Arabia?

Median fixed broadband is around 155.4 Mbps. Rapidly opening up; dust-driven air quality among the region's tougher aspects.

What does $3,000/month get you in Saudi Arabia?

Single-person essentials run about $949/month at local prices, so $3,000 lives "like royalty" (3.2× essentials).

Livability · rank 90/167

Is 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia (Riyadh) a good place to live?

Quality score 61/100 against essentials of $949/month. Rapidly opening up; dust-driven air quality among the region's tougher aspects.

The five metrics

Internet 62 155.4 Mbps median broadband, 100% online

Safety 94 0.9 homicides/100k (2019)

Healthcare 83 UHC service coverage 83/100 (2023)

Air quality 11 PM2.5 45 µg/m³ (2023)

English 55 day-to-day usability

Beside the score, not inside it

Neither of these is part of the composite above, deliberately. Folding governance into a quality-of-life number would bury a political judgement where you could not see it or argue with it, and connection price is a different question from connection speed — somewhere fast and expensive and somewhere slow and cheap are different trade-offs, not one average.

Rule of law: middling; World Bank WGI estimate 0.21 · corruption control 0.75 · stability -0.05 (2024). Scale −2.5 to +2.5, higher is better.
What connectivity costs: $8 /mo broadband; Mobile 10GB $23/month. ITU price basket. The speed above is scored; this price is not.

What your budget buys

Monthly budget	vs essentials ($949)	Verdict
$2,000	2.1×	very comfortable
$3,000	3.2×	like royalty
$5,000	5.3×	like royalty

Essentials from the Pint & Property basket. Rank countries by your own priorities in the interactive matrix.

🪤 Tax residency triggers at 183 days. Tax residency details →

Similar value-for-money

🇧🇼 Botswana — quality 47.2, essentials $736/mo
🇵🇪 Peru — quality 67.9, essentials $1,046/mo
🇲🇹 Malta — quality 91.3, essentials $1,403/mo
🇺🇬 Uganda — quality 41.4, essentials $633/mo

Frequently asked questions

Is Saudi Arabia a good place to live for remote workers?: Saudi Arabia scores 61/100 on our equal-weighted livability composite (internet 155.4 Mbps, safety 94, healthcare 83, air quality 11, english 55) — rank 90 of 167. Rapidly opening up; dust-driven air quality among the region's tougher aspects.
How fast is the internet in Saudi Arabia?: Median fixed broadband is around 155.4 Mbps. Rapidly opening up; dust-driven air quality among the region's tougher aspects.
What does $3,000/month get you in Saudi Arabia?: Single-person essentials run about $949/month at local prices, so $3,000 lives "like royalty" (3.2× essentials).