Qatar vs Saudi Arabia: Military spending as a share of GDP
Qatar
6.5%
in 2022
Saudi Arabia
6.5%
in 2025
Qatar rank
7th
Saudi Arabia rank
8th
Military spending as a share of GDP over time
- Qatar
- Saudi Arabia
How they compare
Qatar currently reports 6.5% against 6.5% in Saudi Arabia, a difference of 0.0%.
The two have swapped places 9 times across 22 shared years of data; in 1980 it was Saudi Arabia ahead.
Qatar ranks 7th and Saudi Arabia ranks 8th of 166 countries.
Across the 5 decades both report, Qatar averaged higher in 1 and Saudi Arabia in 4.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Qatar | Saudi Arabia | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 15.1% | 15.8% | 0.7% | Saudi Arabia |
| 1990s | 11.9% | 13.2% | 1.4% | Saudi Arabia |
| 2000s | 2.4% | 8.5% | 6.0% | Saudi Arabia |
| 2010s | 1.5% | 8.6% | 7.1% | Saudi Arabia |
| 2020s | 6.5% | 6.1% | 0.4% | Qatar |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher military spending as a share of gdp, Qatar or Saudi Arabia?
- Qatar, at 6.5% against 6.5% in Saudi Arabia as of 2022.
- What is the difference in military spending as a share of gdp between Qatar and Saudi Arabia?
- 0.0%, with Qatar ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Qatar and Saudi Arabia?
- 22 years are reported by both, from 1980 to 2022.
- How do Qatar and Saudi Arabia rank globally for military spending as a share of gdp?
- Qatar ranks 7th and Saudi Arabia ranks 8th of 166 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (2026) β with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Military spending as a share of GDP. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Total military expenditure divided by gross domestic product, expressed as a percentage.