Saudi Arabia Nears Universal Internet Adoption, GASTAT Survey Shows
What Saudi Arabia’s internet usage patterns reveal about digital maturity.
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[Image source: Chetan Jha/MITSMR Middle East]
As Saudi Arabia accelerates its push toward a digitally enabled economy under Vision 2030, near-total internet access is emerging as a foundational enabler of productivity, service delivery, and consumer engagement. High levels of connectivity are not only reshaping how individuals communicate and consume content, but also how businesses scale digitally and how government services are delivered across the Kingdom.
Against this backdrop, Saudi Arabia is approaching universal internet adoption, underscoring the pace and depth of its digital transformation, according to new data released by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT).
Findings from GASTAT’s 2025 survey on access to and use of information and communication technology reveal that 99% of residents aged 15 to 74 use the internet. Internet penetration reached 99.3% among Saudi nationals and 98.6% among non-Saudis, highlighting the breadth of digital inclusion across the population.
Usage rates were nearly identical across genders, with 99% of males and 98.9% of females reporting internet use. Among Saudi citizens specifically, internet usage stood at 99.5% for males and 99.2% for females.
The survey shows that internet access is predominantly home-based, with 98.7% of users going online from their residences. However, mobility is also shaping digital behavior, as nearly half of respondents, 48.7% reported using the internet while traveling or commuting.
Daily connectivity has become the norm. Nearly 97% of users access the internet at least once a day, while 2.4% use it weekly but not daily. Only a small fraction, 0.8% reported monthly usage.
Mobile phones remain the primary gateway to the internet, used by 98.4% of individuals. Tablets and laptops are used by 9.9% and 8.6% of users, respectively, while other mobile devices account for 1.3%.
In terms of online activities, video consumption dominates, with 79.4% of individuals watching online video content. Audio streaming attracts 32% of users, while 11.5% use the internet for gaming.
Social networking remains the most widespread use case, engaging 96.2% of internet users. Participation levels were high across genders, with 95.7% among males and 97.1% among females. Searching for information about goods and services ranked second, cited by 57.2% of users.
The survey also highlights the strong uptake of digital government services. Around 98.2% of individuals reported accessing government services online, a figure consistent among Saudi nationals. The most commonly used e-government function was accessing government services digitally, reported by 92.7% of online users.
E-commerce adoption is similarly robust. About 71% of individuals in the Kingdom purchase goods and services online, with Saudi citizens accounting for the majority of online shoppers. Female participation in online purchasing exceeded that of males, at 82.8% compared to 77.6%.
Clothing, footwear, and sporting goods dominate online purchases, accounting for 88.8% of transactions, followed by cosmetics at 40.2%, indicating continued growth opportunities for digital retail, logistics, and consumer platforms in Saudi Arabia.
