Oil reserves in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia: Oil reserves was 41.11 billion cubic meters in 2021. ▲ Rising
Oil reserves in Saudi Arabia, 1980–2021
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (2022) – with major processing by Our World in Data. Measured in cubic meters.
Analysis
In 2021, oil reserves in Saudi Arabia stood at 41.11 billion cubic meters.
The figure is down 3.2% on the previous year and down 2.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, oil reserves in Saudi Arabia peaked at 42.45 billion cubic meters in 2020 and was at its lowest, 26.28 billion cubic meters, in 1983.
That places Saudi Arabia 2nd out of 216 countries with data for 2021, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 42 years of available data.
Oil reserves in Saudi Arabia, year by year
| Year | cubic meters | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 26.47 billion cubic meters | — |
| 1981 | 26.71 billion cubic meters | +0.9% |
| 1982 | 26.69 billion cubic meters | -0.1% |
| 1983 | 26.28 billion cubic meters | -1.5% |
| 1984 | 26.84 billion cubic meters | +2.1% |
| 1985 | 27.30 billion cubic meters | +1.7% |
| 1986 | 27.26 billion cubic meters | -0.1% |
| 1987 | 26.90 billion cubic meters | -1.3% |
| 1988 | 26.96 billion cubic meters | +0.2% |
| 1989 | 27.44 billion cubic meters | +1.8% |
| 1990 | 40.95 billion cubic meters | +49.2% |
| 1991 | 41.34 billion cubic meters | +0.9% |
| 1992 | 41.39 billion cubic meters | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 41.39 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 41.53 billion cubic meters | +0.3% |
| 1995 | 41.53 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 41.53 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 41.58 billion cubic meters | +0.1% |
| 1998 | 41.58 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 41.58 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 41.89 billion cubic meters | +0.8% |
| 2001 | 41.61 billion cubic meters | -0.7% |
| 2002 | 41.61 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 41.62 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 41.64 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 41.64 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 42.02 billion cubic meters | +0.9% |
| 2007 | 42.01 billion cubic meters | -0.0% |
| 2008 | 42.01 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 42.01 billion cubic meters | -0.0% |
| 2010 | 42.01 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 42.04 billion cubic meters | +0.1% |
| 2012 | 42.06 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 42.20 billion cubic meters | +0.3% |
| 2014 | 42.27 billion cubic meters | +0.2% |
| 2015 | 42.26 billion cubic meters | -0.0% |
| 2016 | 42.38 billion cubic meters | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 42.36 billion cubic meters | -0.0% |
| 2018 | 42.32 billion cubic meters | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 42.33 billion cubic meters | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 42.45 billion cubic meters | +0.3% |
| 2021 | 41.11 billion cubic meters | -3.2% |
Saudi Arabia compared with similar countries
- Saudi Arabia's 41.11 billion cubic meters is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 397.47 million cubic meters, 103.4× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Oil reserves in Saudi Arabia changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | +49.2% | 27.44 billion cubic meters | 40.95 billion cubic meters |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 26.89 billion cubic meters | 26.28 billion cubic meters | 27.44 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 1990s | 41.44 billion cubic meters | 40.95 billion cubic meters | 41.58 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2000s | 41.81 billion cubic meters | 41.61 billion cubic meters | 42.02 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2010s | 42.22 billion cubic meters | 42.01 billion cubic meters | 42.38 billion cubic meters | 10 |
| 2020s | 41.78 billion cubic meters | 41.11 billion cubic meters | 42.45 billion cubic meters | 2 |
Countries ranked near Saudi Arabia
More energy & mining data for Saudi Arabia
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, annual growth rate 1.85 % change on previous year (2025)
- Coal consumption, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Coal consumption, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Primary energy use, per capita 0.0001 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Coal production, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2024)
- Coal production, per unit of GDP 0 terawatt-hours per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Fossil fuel consumption by fuel, per capita 0 terawatt-hours per person (2025)
- Fuel imports 5.7% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is oil reserves in Saudi Arabia?
- Oil reserves in Saudi Arabia was 41.11 billion cubic meters in 2021, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration (2022) – with major processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest oil reserves recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The highest recorded value was 42.45 billion cubic meters in 2020.
- What is the lowest oil reserves recorded in Saudi Arabia?
- The lowest recorded value was 26.28 billion cubic meters in 1983.
- How does Saudi Arabia rank for oil reserves?
- Saudi Arabia ranks 2nd out of 216 countries with data for 2021.
- Is oil reserves rising or falling in Saudi Arabia?
- Over the last ten years it is down 2.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Saudi Arabia data come from?
- The figures come from U.S. Energy Information Administration (2022) – with major processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Oil reserves. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 42 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Proved reserves, measured in cubic meters, are generally those quantities that can be recovered in the future from known reservoirs under existing economic and operating conditions, according to geological and engineering information. Includes crude oil and lease condensate.