Kuwait vs Saudi Arabia

Kuwait vs Saudi Arabia: GDP growth

GDP growth in 2025: 2.7% a year in Kuwait and 4.6% a year in Saudi Arabia, by IMF estimates. In 2025 the value was higher in Saudi Arabia, by 1.9 percentage points, or 1.68 times that in Kuwait.

Watch it change on the map

% a year · IMF

Kuwait vs Saudi Arabia: GDP growthGDP growth in 2025: 2.7% a year in Kuwait and 4.6% a year in Saudi Arabia, by IMF estimates. In 2025 the value was higher in Saudi Arabia, by 1.9 percentage points, or 1.68 times that in Kuwait.
KuwaitSaudi ArabiaIMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026)

What the numbers say

  • Saudi Arabia has been higher since 2020, when it overtook Kuwait.
  • In 2025, Kuwait ranked 84 and Saudi Arabia ranked 44 of 143 countries, counting from the highest.
  • The IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026) puts Kuwait at 2.2% a year and Saudi Arabia at 3.6% a year in 2031.

Every year

% a year · IMF

YearKuwaitSaudi Arabia
20252.74.6
2024-1.52.6
2023-1.60.5
20226.812
20211.76.5
2020-4.8-3.8
20192.31.7
20182.73.2
2017-4.71.2
20162.91.7
20150.64.7
20140.54
20131.22.9
20126.65.8
20119.611.8
2010-2.45
2009-7.1-1.1
20082.56.2
200762.2
20067.53.3
200510.65.9
200410.28.6
200317.38.8
20023-0.7
20010.20.3
20004.74.7
1999-1.8-0.6
19983.72.8
19972.52.6
19960.63.3
19951.70.3
19948.61
199335.10.4
199282.84.6
1991-418.2
1990-26.29.4
198925.90.4
1988-10.16.6
19878.1-3.1
19868.61
1985-4.3-7.2
19845.2-4
19835.3-11
1982-9.5-16.1
1981–3
1980–5.8
IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026) · 2026–2031
YearKuwaitSaudi Arabia
2026-16.7-3.3
202717.17.9
202811.54.8
20292.33.4
20302.33.5
20312.23.6

Each country on its own

Good to know

  • How much the economy grew or shrank in a year, after inflation.
  • Source: IMF, World Economic Outlook, October 2026.
  • The dashed line is the IMF projection (World Economic Outlook, October 2026), a scenario rather than a forecast.
  • Ranks count the 143 countries with a value in 2025, highest first.

How the layers work, where their data comes from and what they can’t tell you: Countries through time

Kuwait vs Saudi Arabia

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