Physicians in Saudi Arabia 2011-2022, by nationality

In 2022, there were around 7600 Saudi physicians working in Saudi Arabia. During the same year, there were roughly 5800 foreign physicians working in the country. Since 2020, there have been more Saudi physicians in the country than foreign physicians whereas is previous years, foreign physicians always used to outnumber local doctors. 

 Insight into the healthcare industry of Saudi Arabia 

The growing healthcare budget and investments made over the previous ten years are evidence that the demand for healthcare in Saudi Arabia has continued to climb. Saudi Arabia accounted for 60 percent of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations' healthcare spending. Since 2010 the number of hospitals in Saudi Arabia has increased significantly across the country. In 2020, the region with the highest number of hospitals across the kingdom was Riyadh.

 Demographics of physicians in Saudi Arabia

With the new Saudization requirement, healthcare facilities must ensure that at least 60 percent of their workforce are Saudi nationals. With the number of physicians almost doubling over the past decade (608539), the share of Saudi physicians has been increasing over the years compared to non-Saudi physicians in the country. It was forecasted that the number of physicians in the country will grow to exceed one million by 2025.