Saudi Arabia vs Iran, Islamic Rep.
Side-by-side economic and demographic comparison · 2026 data · Source: IMF & World Bank
Saudi Arabia and Iran are the Gulf's largest economies and bitter geopolitical rivals. Saudi Arabia's GDP is roughly three times Iran's in nominal terms, a gap dramatically widened by US sanctions on Iran since 2018. Iran's economy has been severely constrained by isolation from the global financial system, hyperinflation, and currency collapse — the rial lost 80%+ of its value. Despite these challenges, Iran has a more diversified manufacturing base and a larger population (88M vs 35M). Saudi Arabia's economy is more oil-concentrated but benefits from massive sovereign wealth (the Public Investment Fund manages $900B+).
Saudi Arabia has a GDP of $1.32T compared to Iran, Islamic Rep.'s $375.64B, making it 3.5x larger. Saudi Arabia's population is 35.3M vs Iran, Islamic Rep.'s 91.6M. Across 12 key indicators, Saudi Arabia leads in 9 categories. All data sourced from the IMF World Economic Outlook and World Bank World Development Indicators.
| Indicator |  Saudi Arabia |  Iran, Islamic Rep. |
|---|---|---|
| GDP (USD) | $1.32T✓ | $375.64B |
| GDP per Capita | $35,839✓ | $4,250 |
| GDP Growth (%) | 4.0%✓ | 1.1% |
| GDP per Capita (PPP) | $77,485✓ | $21,882 |
| Population | 35.3M | 91.6M✓ |
| Life Expectancy | 78.7 years✓ | 77.7 years |
| Inflation (%) | 2.0%✓ | 41.6% |
| Unemployment (%) | 3.5%✓ | 9.2% |
| Govt Debt (% GDP) | 31.8%✓ | 36.4% |
| Fertility Rate | 2.3✓ | 1.7 |
| Gini Index | N/A | 35.9 |
| CO₂ per Capita (t) | 18.5 | 9.1✓ |
Summary
Saudi Arabia has a GDP of $1.32T compared to Iran, Islamic Rep.'s $375.64B, making the former economy 3.5x larger. In terms of population, Saudi Arabia has 35.3M people while Iran, Islamic Rep. has 91.6M. Across the 12 indicators compared, Saudi Arabia leads in 9 and Iran, Islamic Rep. leads in 2.
Saudi ArabiaIran, Islamic Rep.