Saudi Arabia’s internet market has entered an advanced stage of digital maturity, with internet penetration reaching 99.6%, a report by the Communications, Space and Technology Commission (CST) showed.
This milestone coincides with increased consumption intensity, improved network speeds, and the widespread adoption of government services, banking, and e-commerce, alongside a significant surge in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools.
Indicator
Value
Internet penetration
99.60%
Individuals using the internet 7+ hours per day
61.30%
Mobile internet data consumption per capita
53 GB/month
Per capita consumption vs. global average
3x
Median mobile internet download speed
216 Mbps
Median 5G download speed
320 Mbps
Median fixed internet speed
151 Mbps
Use of e-government services
96%
Use of e-banking services
85.90%
Online shopping
76.90%
Use of AI tools
45.20%
Internet data traffic
69 million TB
IoT subscriptions
13.85 million
Saudi domain names
84,000
Internet penetration in the Kingdom reached 99.6%, approaching universal adoption, with rates among most age groups under 60 hovering around 100%.
Internet penetration by gender
Category
Usage rate
Total
99.60%
Male
99.80%
Female
99.40%
Internet penetration by age group
Age group
Usage rate
10–19
99.80%
20–29
99.90%
30–39
100%
40–49
99.90%
50–59
99.80%
60–74
92.80%
The data showed that geographic disparities in internet access have become very limited, with usage exceeding 98.5% across all regions.
Internet penetration by region
Region
Rate
Riyadh
100%
Makkah
100%
Madinah
100%
Eastern Province
100%
Hail
100%
Al Jouf
99.8%
Tabuk
99.7%
Qassim
99.6%
Northern Borders
99.6%
Najran
99.3%
Baha
99.1%
Asir
98.5%
Jazan
98.8%
Internet usage intensity was also high, with 61.3% of individuals using the internet for seven hours or more per day. The rate rose to 63.8% among females, compared with 59.4% among males.
Meanwhile, 34.1% use the internet for three to six hours per day, while only 4.6% use it for less than three hours.
Daily internet usage
Duration
Total
Male
Female
7+ hours
61.30%
59.40%
63.80%
3–6 hours
34.10%
34.90%
33.00%
Less than 3 hours
4.60%
5.70%
3.20%
Internet use while commuting ranked first at 84%, followed by use at home at 77.5%, while 41.4% used the internet at work.
Places of internet use
Location
Rate
While commuting
84%
Home
77.5%
Workplace
41.4%
The percentage of individuals purchasing products or services online reached 76.9%, rising to 85.6% among females, compared with 70.2% among males.
Online shopping by gender
Category
Rate
Total
76.90%
Male
70.20%
Female
85.60%
Clothing and footwear topped online purchases at 87.7%, followed by cosmetics at 46.2%, food products at 41.8%, and computers and smartphones at 36.9%.
Most purchased products and services online
Category
Overall rate
Clothing and footwear
87.70%
Cosmetics
46.20%
Food products
41.80%
Computers and smartphones
36.90%
Travel services
36.50%
AI adoption among individuals reached 45.2%, reflecting the growing integration of these technologies into everyday digital activities.
By gender, the rate stood at 52.8% among females, compared with 39.4% among males.
AI adoption by gender
Category
Rate
Total
45.20%
Male
39.40%
Female
52.80%
AI adoption was highest among younger age groups, with individuals aged 20–29 recording the highest rate at 55.7%, followed by those aged 10–19 at 53.4%.
The rate declined progressively with age, reaching 46.2% among those aged 30–39, 37.8% among those aged 40–49, 27.4% among those aged 50–59, and 14.8% among those aged 60–74.
AI adoption by age group
Age group
Usage rate
10–19
53.40%
20–29
55.70%
30–39
46.20%
40–49
37.80%
50–59
27.40%
60–74
14.80%
Tabuk led the Kingdom’s regions in AI tool adoption at 58.5%, followed by Najran at 53.8%, Al Jouf at 50.8%, and the Eastern Province at 50.2%. Asir and Riyadh recorded rates of 48.9% and 46.6%, respectively.
Makkah and Madinah recorded rates of 42% and 39.7%, respectively, while the lowest rates were reported in the Northern Borders at 35.1%, Al Bahah at 32.2%, and Jazan at 30.7%.
AI tool adoption by region
Region
Rate
Tabuk
58.50%
Najran
53.80%
Al Jouf
50.80%
Eastern Province
50.20%
Asir
48.90%
Riyadh
46.60%
Makkah
42.00%
Hail
43.20%
Madinah
39.70%
Northern Borders
35.10%
Baha
32.20%
Jazan
30.70%
Mobile internet data consumption per capita reached 53 GB per month, equivalent to about three times the global average, according to the report.
Riyadh accounted for the largest share of data traffic at 30.6%, followed by Makkah at 20.5% and the Eastern Province at 16.8%, with the remaining traffic distributed across other regions.
Data traffic by region
Region
Share
Riyadh
30.60%
Makkah
20.50%
Eastern Province
16.80%
Qassim
6.60%
Madinah
4.50%
Asir
5.60%
Jazan
4.40%
Tabuk
3.20%
Al Jouf
2.10%
Hail
1.70%
Najran
1.60%
Northern Borders
1.20%
Baha
1.20%
Internet of Things
The number of IoT subscriptions in the Kingdom reached 13.85 million in 2025, while urban population coverage for NB-IoT reached 99%.
More than 30,000 towers supported the technology, while household IoT adoption stood at around 18%.
Indicator
2025
IoT subscriptions
13.85 million
Urban population coverage of NB-IoT
99%
Towers supporting the technology
More than 30,000
Household IoT adoption
18%
Saudi Arabia’s internet market has entered an advanced stage of digital maturity, with internet penetration reaching 99.6%, a report by the Communications, Space and Technology Commission (CST) showed.
This milestone coincides with increased consumption intensity, improved network speeds, and the widespread adoption of government services, banking, and e-commerce, alongside a significant surge in the use of artificial intelligence (AI) tools.
Indicator
Value
Internet penetration
99.60%
Individuals using the internet 7+ hours per day
61.30%
Mobile internet data consumption per capita
53 GB/month
Per capita consumption vs. global average
3x
Median mobile internet download speed
216 Mbps
Median 5G download speed
320 Mbps
Median fixed internet speed
151 Mbps
Use of e-government services
96%
Use of e-banking services
85.90%
Online shopping
76.90%
Use of AI tools
45.20%
Internet data traffic
69 million TB
IoT subscriptions
13.85 million
Saudi domain names
84,000
Internet penetration in the Kingdom reached 99.6%, approaching universal adoption, with rates among most age groups under 60 hovering around 100%.
Internet penetration by gender
Category
Usage rate
Total
99.60%
Male
99.80%
Female
99.40%
Internet penetration by age group
Age group
Usage rate
10–19
99.80%
20–29
99.90%
30–39
100%
40–49
99.90%
50–59
99.80%
60–74
92.80%
The data showed that geographic disparities in internet access have become very limited, with usage exceeding 98.5% across all regions.
Internet penetration by region
Region
Rate
Riyadh
100%
Makkah
100%
Madinah
100%
Eastern Province
100%
Hail
100%
Al Jouf
99.8%
Tabuk
99.7%
Qassim
99.6%
Northern Borders
99.6%
Najran
99.3%
Baha
99.1%
Asir
98.5%
Jazan
98.8%
Internet usage intensity was also high, with 61.3% of individuals using the internet for seven hours or more per day. The rate rose to 63.8% among females, compared with 59.4% among males.
Meanwhile, 34.1% use the internet for three to six hours per day, while only 4.6% use it for less than three hours.
Daily internet usage
Duration
Total
Male
Female
7+ hours
61.30%
59.40%
63.80%
3–6 hours
34.10%
34.90%
33.00%
Less than 3 hours
4.60%
5.70%
3.20%
Internet use while commuting ranked first at 84%, followed by use at home at 77.5%, while 41.4% used the internet at work.
Places of internet use
Location
Rate
While commuting
84%
Home
77.5%
Workplace
41.4%
The percentage of individuals purchasing products or services online reached 76.9%, rising to 85.6% among females, compared with 70.2% among males.
Online shopping by gender
Category
Rate
Total
76.90%
Male
70.20%
Female
85.60%
Clothing and footwear topped online purchases at 87.7%, followed by cosmetics at 46.2%, food products at 41.8%, and computers and smartphones at 36.9%.
Most purchased products and services online
Category
Overall rate
Clothing and footwear
87.70%
Cosmetics
46.20%
Food products
41.80%
Computers and smartphones
36.90%
Travel services
36.50%
AI adoption among individuals reached 45.2%, reflecting the growing integration of these technologies into everyday digital activities.
By gender, the rate stood at 52.8% among females, compared with 39.4% among males.
AI adoption by gender
Category
Rate
Total
45.20%
Male
39.40%
Female
52.80%
AI adoption was highest among younger age groups, with individuals aged 20–29 recording the highest rate at 55.7%, followed by those aged 10–19 at 53.4%.
The rate declined progressively with age, reaching 46.2% among those aged 30–39, 37.8% among those aged 40–49, 27.4% among those aged 50–59, and 14.8% among those aged 60–74.
AI adoption by age group
Age group
Usage rate
10–19
53.40%
20–29
55.70%
30–39
46.20%
40–49
37.80%
50–59
27.40%
60–74
14.80%
Tabuk led the Kingdom’s regions in AI tool adoption at 58.5%, followed by Najran at 53.8%, Al Jouf at 50.8%, and the Eastern Province at 50.2%. Asir and Riyadh recorded rates of 48.9% and 46.6%, respectively.
Makkah and Madinah recorded rates of 42% and 39.7%, respectively, while the lowest rates were reported in the Northern Borders at 35.1%, Al Bahah at 32.2%, and Jazan at 30.7%.
AI tool adoption by region
Region
Rate
Tabuk
58.50%
Najran
53.80%
Al Jouf
50.80%
Eastern Province
50.20%
Asir
48.90%
Riyadh
46.60%
Makkah
42.00%
Hail
43.20%
Madinah
39.70%
Northern Borders
35.10%
Baha
32.20%
Jazan
30.70%
Mobile internet data consumption per capita reached 53 GB per month, equivalent to about three times the global average, according to the report.
Riyadh accounted for the largest share of data traffic at 30.6%, followed by Makkah at 20.5% and the Eastern Province at 16.8%, with the remaining traffic distributed across other regions.
Data traffic by region
Region
Share
Riyadh
30.60%
Makkah
20.50%
Eastern Province
16.80%
Qassim
6.60%
Madinah
4.50%
Asir
5.60%
Jazan
4.40%
Tabuk
3.20%
Al Jouf
2.10%
Hail
1.70%
Najran
1.60%
Northern Borders
1.20%
Baha
1.20%
Internet of Things
The number of IoT subscriptions in the Kingdom reached 13.85 million in 2025, while urban population coverage for NB-IoT reached 99%.
More than 30,000 towers supported the technology, while household IoT adoption stood at around 18%.
Indicator
2025
IoT subscriptions
13.85 million
Urban population coverage of NB-IoT
99%
Towers supporting the technology
More than 30,000
Household IoT adoption
18%
