Q1 2021	Q2 2021	Q3 2021	Q4 2021	Q1 2022	Q2 2022	Q3 2022	Q4 2022	Q1 2023	Q2 2023	Q3 2023	Q4 2023	Q1 2024	Q2 2024	Q3 2024	Q4 2024	Q1 2025
Agriculture, forestry and fishing	16,434	16,266	16,288	16,527	17,545	22,812	NA	25,528	26,194	23,744	19,576	20,737	20,800	24,294	23,941	30,187	32,364
Mining and quarrying	111,099	111,003	111,765	114,420	113,400	101,644	NA	105,217	107,031	110,356	111,606	114,264	115,960	118,180	119,694	123,583	122,979
Manufacturing	211,568	213,760	218,854	225,917	235,198	235,459	NA	255,544	276,313	295,968	324,340	344,800	358,716	370,106	379,981	404,875	408,164
Electricity, gas, steam and air conditioning supply	40,952	41,032	41,242	41,596	42,065	33,641	NA	33,170	32,695	32,120	31,581	31,694	31,494	33,648	33,513	34,493	34,625
Water supply; sewerage, waste management and remediation activities	5,122	5,272	5,336	5,567	7,440	18,351	NA	20,399	21,415	21,876	25,171	26,976	22,660	34,838	35,760	36,671	36,645
Construction	311,944	286,699	290,900	302,768	318,228	347,865	NA	369,532	368,016	365,366	380,329	383,785	397,613	400,320	410,273	426,068	434,440
Wholesale and retail trade; repair of motor vehicles and motorcycles	446,094	445,969	460,134	460,682	481,745	431,257	NA	420,283	424,734	418,320	413,349	411,501	405,746	396,519	391,102	395,093	392,019
Transportation and storage	66,144	67,453	70,977	75,606	86,032	107,796	NA	119,572	124,173	127,304	130,760	132,670	137,440	137,391	141,228	148,261	151,111
Accommodation and food service activities	78,333	74,799	79,822	115,570	149,260	141,452	NA	150,110	151,043	149,910	149,285	147,425	143,828	141,094	137,053	138,371	137,153
Information and communication	40,986	41,119	42,329	44,093	45,927	73,918	NA	76,714	75,783	72,282	61,123	59,389	62,968	63,220	63,984	65,718	67,436
Financial and insurance activities	63,629	64,199	64,642	65,029	66,454	71,940	NA	75,001	75,752	76,323	76,772	78,582	79,611	80,071	81,715	82,952	84,296
Real estate activities	13,049	13,581	14,444	14,883	15,741	24,677	NA	22,925	23,438	22,853	22,207	21,656	21,685	21,424	21,146	21,350	21,932
Professional, scientific and technical activities	44,394	44,560	46,420	49,857	58,115	84,006	NA	105,783	113,405	115,304	118,852	122,074	124,267	125,817	131,526	133,975	135,926
Administrative and support service activities	139,343	131,967	138,444	140,659	151,336	189,804	NA	210,350	205,473	198,553	191,886	191,894	191,069	184,883	186,654	192,456	191,971
Public administration and defence; compulsory social security	176,561	186,072	193,476	211,419	217,604	201,819	NA	205,996	209,334	213,359	221,569	228,276	232,997	224,681	232,226	237,908	243,205
Education	70,741	64,313	74,797	80,054	85,456	96,668	NA	104,945	106,346	97,894	110,781	111,806	111,648	99,197	114,745	113,818	112,356
Human health and social work activities	200,122	202,540	209,095	219,344	203,730	201,222	NA	213,943	218,978	215,787	222,718	225,779	227,989	224,253	232,126	237,170	238,680
Arts, entertainment and recreation	8,715	9,287	10,296	10,435	11,317	10,666	NA	12,898	13,245	13,146	13,246	13,560	13,744	13,785	14,085	15,267	15,452
Other service activities	41,284	42,481	43,352	43,627	45,143	41,985	NA	41,853	41,170	41,818	41,982	41,824	41,983	42,518	42,371	43,732	43,903
Activities of households as employer Activities of extraterritorial organizations and bodiess; undifferentiated goods- and services-producing activities of households for own use	32	31	29	28	23	7	NA	6	7	8	12	15	14	18	22	43	50
Activities of extraterritorial organizations and bodies	1,052	1,155	1,208	1,314	1,416	594	NA	616	606	605	615	275	278	284	284	278	277
Not specified	1,845	1,780	1,458	1,417	20,315	5,370	NA	11,030	16,037	18,308	29,037	29,448	28,175	35,879	36,810	11,503	10,916
	2,089,443	2,065,338	2,135,308	2,240,812	2,373,490	2,442,953	NA	2,581,415	2,631,188	2,631,204	2,696,797	2,738,430	2,770,685	2,772,420	2,830,239	2,893,772	2,915,900

Source: Register-based Labour Market Statistics, General Authority for Statistics (GAStat)

1. Data collection methodology

LFS were first conducted in 2001 and became bi-annual after 2006. Data were collected through nationally representative household sample surveys, which sampling was based on most recent censuses.
Since 2016, Labour Force Surveys have been conducted and published on a quarterly basis, based on a household telephone survey conducted by GAStat. Employment data extracted from administrative records were also introduced as a complement to the results of Labour Force Surveys in Labour Market Statistics’ publications, starting on Q1 2017.

The present data is taken from administrative records.

Population of reference: workers subject to the rule of the General Organization of Social Insurance (GOSI):
a. contributors on the job who are subject to social insurance laws and regulations in the private and government sector;
b. new contributors, and contributors who terminated their contribution to social insurance during the quarter.

Figures of workers in Labor Market statistics which were derived from administrative records do not include the following categories:
1-Workers in the military and security sectors
2- Workers who are not registered in the civil service, social insurance (GOSI) and domestic workers’ records, which include:
– Saudis working for their own businesses and are not subjected to the labor regulations, also, not registered in social insurance,
such as those who work in delivery through electronic apps
– Saudi employers who work in establishments and not registered in the social insurance
– Non-Saudi staff working in foreign international, political or military missions

3- Non-Saudi employees who come to the Kingdom for work that normally takes less than three months to be completed.

Definitions and categories used by GAStat in Labour Markets Statistics (employment; unemployment; occupation and activity sectors, etc.) are based on international standards:
For LFS methodology and definitions, see metadata section in report, and:
https://database.stats.gov.sa/Methodologies/En_Documents/03_Labor%20Market%20Bulletin%20Methodology,%20Fourth%20Quarter%202020%20_%20General%20Authority%20for%20Statistics.pdf
https://database.stats.gov.sa/Methodologies/En_Documents/03_Labor%20Market%20Bulletin%20Methodology,%20Fourth%20Quarter%202020%20_%20General%20Authority%20for%20Statistics.pdf

Classification of economic activities: Saudi Classification of Economic Activities, based on the International Standard Industrial Classification of all economic activities (ISIC4)
https://www.stats.gov.sa/en/classifications

2. Institution which provides data 

General Authority for Statistics (GAStat)

3. Data availability 

Since 2021, GAStat has been publishing separately the employment data taken from administrative records,and unemployment/inactivity data as well as general indicators, calculated from the results of the field interviews conducted by GAStat (Labour Force Survey).
The time-series was built using the quarterly Register-based Labour Market Statistics for given quarters 2023-2025: available at:
https://www.stats.gov.sa/en/statistics-tabs/-/categories/417515?tab=436312&category=417515
Before 2023: available in the “archived data”:
https://www.stats.gov.sa/en/statistics?index=1317550
“social statistics”, and “labour force”
https://www.stats.gov.sa/en/statistics-tabs?tab=436312&category=1333429

Last date of access: 26 August 2025.

Keywords: Employment, Saudi Arabia, National & Foreign Labour

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that the information will not be removed from the website it was obtained from;
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