Where is it better to live in Saudi Arabia or in Bahrain?
To answer the question - which country - Saudi Arabia or Bahrain, is more comfortable for living, let’s compare different constituents which make the standard of living:
Would you like to contrast other countries? Fill them in the proper gaps and choose the criteria for comparison:
Perhaps, it’s difficult to argue that it’s better to live in a rich country than in a poor one. As of 2024 year data, the basic indicator of the economic development - GDP by purchasing power parity per capita - was:
● In Saudi Arabia - 61 thousand dollars,
● In Bahrain - 65,1 thousand dollars.
Thus, according to the gross production per one person, Bahrain leaves Saudi Arabia behind by %.
Let’s compare the data about average labor level pay in both countries.
The average gross salary (before the taxes and other mandatory fees) is:
● in Saudi Arabia - 6,928 riyals (about 1850 US$);
● in Bahrain - 1,330 Bahraini dinars (about 3500 US$).
Where are the prices lower? up↑
The average GDP gap per capita is narrowed down by the difference in cost of living. According to the statistics of the data base Numbeo, at the beginning of 2025 year, Saudi Arabia is a cheaper country.
The price level in Saudi Arabia for basic goods and services (including food, consumer goods, transport, mobile connection and utility bills) is on average % lower than in Bahrain. In other words, at the current exchange rate 1000 dollars in Bahrain will have the same purchasing power as dollars in Saudi Arabia.
Where is the crime rate lower? up↑
One can evaluate the general level of criminal situation with the help of “crime rate”. This indicator is calculated by the portal Numbeo, which specializes in rating scores of different life aspects in all the world regions and shows how safe it is to live in the country from a risk of becoming a victim of lawbreakers (the higher the crime rate is, the higher the risk is). As of 2025 year, the crime rate is:
● in Saudi Arabia - 23.9;
● in Bahrain - 24.5
***
To estimate the population law-abidingness and law enforcement activity, let’s pay attention to the statics of premeditated murders and to the data about the number of Saudis and Bahrainis, being imprisoned.
Yearly out of 100 thousand people, murders kill:
● in Saudi Arabia - 0.80 people;
● in Bahrain - 0.07 people
***As of 2023 year, in prisons and criminal camps the number of inmates is:
● in Saudi Arabia - 68.1 thousand, or 207 prisoners per 100,000 people;
● in Bahrain - 3.49 thousand, or 234 prisoners per 100,000 people
Overall, they kill more often in Saudi Arabia, one stays behind the bars more often in Bahrain.
Where do people get sick less and live longer? up↑
The life quality is greatly defined by how long the people live. According to the latest data, the life expectancy is:
● in Saudi Arabia - 74.3 years (73.1 years among men and 76.1 years among women)
● in Bahrain - 75.8 years (75 years among men and 77 years among women)
***
To get an idea about the nation’s health and the system of health care, one should look at the spread of dangerous diseases in the country.
The number of people infected by tuberculosis is: ● in Saudi Arabia - 3400 people (10 per 100,000 people); ● in Bahrain - 200 people (12 per 100,000 people)
The cancer situation is the following: ● in Saudi Arabia per 100 000 people yearly one finds 96.4 new cases of the disease and registers 51.3 lethal cases; ● in Bahrain per 100k people every year one fixes 112.2 of newly infected people and 64.3 lethal cases from cancer. We should not judge about the quality of medicine only by the number of cancer cases, we should look at the ratio between the number of new cases and the number of cancer deaths (the lower it is, the higher the rate of the cured ones is; consequently, the better the health care system works). In the countries under consideration, we see the following ratio between the newly-infected and the dead: ● in Saudi Arabia - ; ● in Bahrain - Where do people drink and smoke less? up↑ It’s considered that It’s more comfortable to live in that country where people are less exposed to bad habits. The following WHO data show that the situation with the alcohol consumption (pure alcohol) runs as this: ● in Saudi Arabia - 0.2 liters per every person older 15 years old; ● in Bahrain - 1.1 liters per every person older 15 years old *** Addiction to smoking in the countries under consideration is seen like that: ● in Saudi Arabia there are 14,9 % of active smokers among the adults (27,6 % of adult males and 2,1 % of adult females smoke there); ● in Bahrain 15 % of adult population smoke on a constant base (25 % of men and 5,1 % of women) Where do people have more reasons to be satisfied with their lives? up↑ Perhaps, it’s very difficult to make up an indicator, with the help of which one can define how much the people of this or that country are satisfied by their lives. Nevertheless, there have been a couple of researches. For example, the UN experts calculate a so-called "Rating of countries by the Happiness Index”, which helps to understand to what degree the states provide their citizens with the happy life.
As of 2023 data, the happiest ones are Saudis, their happiness index is 6.463, meanwhile in Bahrain the happiness index is equal to 6.173. *** There is also an overall index, which is used by UNO - Human Development Index (HDI). This index considers various reasons why citizens feel comfortable. According to 2022 data, HDI in Saudi Arabia is 0.875; in Bahrain - 0.875. *** To indirectly evaluate how much the people are satisfied with their lives, one can consider the number of suicides. It comes logically that the better the lives of the people are arranged, the fewer reasons for the suicides there are. In the countries under consideration, per 100 000 people there are: ● in Saudi Arabia - 5,4 suicides (7,8 among men and 1,9 among women) ; ● in Bahrain - 7,2 suicides (9,9 among men and 2,3 among women)
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