press rank #175 · ~$1,482/mo

Can you live unwatched in Saudi Arabia?

Restricted press and civil liberties, ranked #175. Not individually assessed beyond public indices.

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The privacy scorecard

State surveillance2/5
Facial recognition2/5
No national ID1/5
Data-protection law1/5
Encryption2/5
VPN freedom2/5
Democracy1/5
Free expression1/5
Cash still works4/5
Financial privacy2/5
Crypto freedom2/5
Easy to stay3/5
Off-grid living2/5
12 cameras / 1,000 people press rank #175 ~$1,482/mo national average

Childhood vaccines: compulsory by law

Childhood vaccination is required by national law here. We have the rule and the penalty, not the official count of how many vaccines the law covers.

If you skip them: A fine, and in a few countries a criminal charge behind it.

Exemptions: The law names none.

Source: Georgetown AMP EID, survey of national legislation, 2024

Legal & financial exposure

Facts about the law, not a privacy score: whether each one helps or hurts depends on what you are trying to do.

Reports your account balances abroad (CRS)

No extradition treaty with the US

ID required to buy a SIM card

4 of 7 signals are unverified for this country: not shown, rather than guessed.

11 real places in Saudi Arabia

Facial recognition, Bitcoin friendliness and cost vary by city even inside the same country.

Riyadh

~$1,600/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 2/5

Jeddah

~$1,750/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 2/5

Mecca

~$1,700/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 2/5

Medina

~$1,700/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 2/5

Dammam

~$1,700/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 2/5

Taif

~$1,250/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 2/5

Tabuk

~$1,300/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 2/5

Hail

~$1,200/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 2/5

Abha

~$1,350/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 2/5

Jazan

~$1,200/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 2/5

AlUla

~$1,550/mo! facial recognition present₿ crypto 2/5

Weigh Saudi Arabia against your own threat model

Surveillance, speech, money: filter thousands of real places across every country and see where Saudi Arabia actually ranks.

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Not just privacy?

Arcadia matches the same real places against how you actually want to live: weather, cost, healthcare, schools, internet.

Find where to live on Arcadia

Country-level estimates for orientation, not legal advice. Surveillance law changes fast: verify anything you would act on.