Data Scientist Salary in Saudi Arabia: Complete Compensation Guide 2026

Data Scientist Compensation in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia is undergoing the most ambitious national digital transformation in the Middle East, and Data Scientists are at the center of it. Vision 2030, the kingdom’s sweeping modernization program, has committed hundreds of billions of dollars to technology infrastructure, artificial intelligence research, and data-driven governance. The establishment of the Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) as a dedicated government entity signals the strategic importance placed on AI and data science at the highest levels of national policy. For Data Scientists considering a move to Saudi Arabia, this translates into an unprecedented volume of opportunities, generous compensation packages, and the chance to work on some of the most ambitious technology projects anywhere in the world.

The Saudi data science market has evolved dramatically since 2023. What was once a nascent field dominated by a handful of government projects and multinational consultancies has blossomed into a mature ecosystem spanning energy, finance, healthcare, telecommunications, entertainment, and the massive NEOM smart city megaproject. Riyadh, in particular, has emerged as a serious contender for the title of regional AI capital, with the government’s mandate requiring multinational companies to establish regional headquarters in the capital creating a surge of new employers and opportunities. The kingdom’s National Strategy for Data and AI, managed by SDAIA, targets having Saudi Arabia among the top 15 countries globally in AI adoption—a goal that is driving relentless hiring of qualified Data Scientists.

Salary Overview by Experience Level

Data Scientist salaries in Saudi Arabia have risen steadily as demand outpaces supply. The following ranges represent monthly base salaries in SAR and reflect the current 2026 market, primarily in Riyadh and Jeddah.

Entry-Level (0–2 years): SAR 10,000–16,000 per month. Junior Data Scientists with a Master’s degree in data science, statistics, machine learning, or a related quantitative field enter in this range. Graduates from Saudi universities with strong programs (KAUST, KFUPM, King Saud University) are competitive at the higher end, particularly those with thesis work in applied ML. Candidates with relevant internships at SDAIA, Saudi Aramco, or tech companies start at SAR 13,000–16,000, while those without prior work experience typically begin at SAR 10,000–13,000. Python proficiency, SQL fluency, and familiarity with at least one ML framework (scikit-learn, TensorFlow, or PyTorch) are minimum requirements.

Mid-Level (3–6 years): SAR 16,000–27,000 per month. At this level, Data Scientists are expected to lead end-to-end ML projects, from problem formulation and data pipeline design through model training, evaluation, and deployment. Proficiency in cloud ML platforms (AWS SageMaker, Google Vertex AI, or Azure ML) is increasingly expected. Specializations in high-demand areas—particularly NLP, computer vision, time series forecasting, and recommendation systems—command the upper end of this range. The gap between government entities (SAR 16,000–20,000) and private-sector AI companies (SAR 22,000–27,000) is notable, though government roles typically compensate with superior benefits and job stability.

Senior Level (7–10 years): SAR 27,000–42,000 per month. Senior Data Scientists in Saudi Arabia lead teams, architect ML systems, establish data science best practices, and drive strategic AI initiatives. MLOps expertise—including model monitoring, automated retraining, feature engineering at scale, and CI/CD pipelines for ML—is a differentiator at this level. Saudi Aramco’s analytics division, SDAIA, and AI-first companies like Mozn regularly pay SAR 35,000–42,000 for senior practitioners with proven track records of deploying production ML systems. Domain expertise in oil and gas, financial services, or healthcare adds significant value.

Principal / Lead / Executive Level (10+ years): SAR 42,000–65,000 per month. Heads of Data Science, Directors of AI, and Chief Data Scientists at this level shape organizational AI strategy and oversee large teams of data professionals. These roles are concentrated at major entities like Saudi Aramco, STC, SDAIA, NEOM, and Lucid Motors’ AI division. PhD holders with publications in top ML venues and industry leadership experience are preferred. Equity participation, performance bonuses of 3–6 months of salary, and executive perks (company car, premium housing) are standard at this tier.

SDAIA and the Government AI Ecosystem

The Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority (SDAIA) is the nerve center of the kingdom’s AI ambitions. Established in 2019 and reporting directly to the Prime Minister, SDAIA oversees national data governance, AI strategy, and the implementation of data-driven solutions across government ministries. For Data Scientists, SDAIA represents one of the most distinctive employment opportunities in the global market.

SDAIA and its subsidiary, the National Center for Artificial Intelligence (NCAI), employ Data Scientists on projects ranging from Arabic natural language understanding and computer vision for public safety to predictive analytics for healthcare and economic planning. The scale is remarkable: SDAIA’s mandate covers the entire Saudi government apparatus, meaning Data Scientists may work on problems affecting millions of citizens across healthcare, education, transportation, and public services.

Compensation at SDAIA is competitive, with mid-level Data Scientists earning SAR 20,000–25,000 and senior roles reaching SAR 35,000–45,000. Benefits include generous housing allowances (particularly important for expatriates in Riyadh), comprehensive medical coverage, and annual performance bonuses. The organization also provides substantial learning budgets, including conference attendance at international AI summits and support for advanced certifications.

Saudi Aramco: Data Science at Energy Scale

Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest energy company, has become one of the most significant employers of Data Scientists in the kingdom. The company’s Fourth Industrial Revolution Center (4IRC) in Dhahran employs hundreds of data professionals working on predictive maintenance for refining and petrochemical operations, reservoir simulation optimization, drilling parameter prediction, supply chain analytics, and carbon emission monitoring.

Data Scientists at Aramco benefit from unparalleled access to industrial-scale datasets and the budget to procure world-class compute infrastructure. The problems are genuinely challenging: optimizing extraction from the world’s largest oil reserves, predicting equipment failures across thousands of facilities, and modeling energy markets with geopolitical complexity. Compensation reflects Aramco’s resources—mid-level Data Scientists earn SAR 22,000–28,000 with housing and utilities typically provided through company residential communities in Dhahran. Senior and principal roles can reach SAR 40,000–55,000 with comprehensive expatriate packages.

NEOM: Building AI into a City from Scratch

NEOM, the USD 500 billion smart city megaproject on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast, represents arguably the most ambitious AI deployment in history. The project aims to build a fully data-driven city where AI powers everything from autonomous transportation and energy management to healthcare delivery and citizen services. For Data Scientists, NEOM offers the rare opportunity to design AI systems for an entire urban environment from the ground up.

NEOM’s technology division employs Data Scientists across computer vision (for autonomous systems and surveillance-free security), IoT analytics (for smart building and infrastructure management), NLP (for multilingual citizen services), and predictive analytics (for energy optimization and resource allocation). Compensation at NEOM is among the highest in the kingdom, reflecting both the project’s strategic importance and the remote location premium. Mid-level Data Scientists can expect SAR 25,000–32,000, while senior and lead roles range from SAR 38,000–55,000 with premium housing, flights, and living allowances included.

The Private Sector AI Landscape

Beyond government entities, Saudi Arabia’s private sector has developed a vibrant AI ecosystem.

• Mozn AI: One of the kingdom’s most prominent AI companies, building Arabic-first AI products for financial services, healthcare, and government. Data Scientists at Mozn work on cutting-edge NLP, including Arabic language models, document understanding, and conversational AI. Competitive salaries with equity participation for early employees.
• Elm: A government-backed technology company that develops AI-powered solutions for identity verification, digital payments, and smart governance. Strong benefits and stable employment.
• Lucid Motors AI (Saudi division): Lucid Motors’ factory in King Abdullah Economic City (KAEC) employs Data Scientists working on autonomous driving perception, battery optimization, and manufacturing quality analytics. Compensation includes US-benchmarked salaries adjusted for the Saudi market.
• STC AI: The AI division of Saudi Telecom Company works on network optimization, customer analytics, and smart city infrastructure. Offers telecommunications-sector stability with AI-company compensation levels.
• Tamara: Saudi Arabia’s leading buy-now-pay-later fintech employs Data Scientists for credit risk modeling, fraud detection, and customer segmentation. Startup-level equity combined with competitive base salaries.

Arabic NLP: A High-Value Specialization

Saudi Arabia’s investment in Arabic language AI creates a particularly lucrative niche for Data Scientists with NLP expertise. The kingdom is funding the development of sovereign Arabic language models, Arabic-first chatbots for government services, Arabic document understanding systems, and Arabic sentiment analysis platforms. The challenge of Arabic NLP—including dialectal variation, morphological complexity, right-to-left text processing, and the scarcity of high-quality annotated datasets—makes this specialization both intellectually demanding and well-compensated.

Data Scientists with Arabic NLP skills earn premiums of 20–35% above generalist salaries. SDAIA, Mozn, and STC are actively hiring for these roles, and the talent pool is thin. Engineers who combine Arabic linguistic knowledge with state-of-the-art NLP techniques (transformer architectures, few-shot learning, multilingual models) are among the most sought-after data professionals in the kingdom.

Benefits and Total Compensation

Saudi Arabia offers a comprehensive benefits structure that significantly boosts total compensation for Data Scientists. Understanding these benefits is essential for accurate offer evaluation.

Housing Allowance: Typically 25–35% of base salary. For a mid-level Data Scientist earning SAR 22,000, this adds SAR 5,500–7,700 monthly. Some employers, particularly in Dhahran and NEOM, provide company housing instead of a cash allowance, which can be substantially more valuable. Riyadh housing costs have risen with the influx of multinational headquarters, making this benefit increasingly important.

Transport Allowance: SAR 1,500–3,000 per month. Senior roles at major employers often include a company vehicle. Public transportation in Saudi Arabia is limited outside Riyadh Metro areas, making car ownership or a transport allowance effectively essential.

Medical Insurance: Mandatory employer-provided coverage under Saudi labor law. Premium plans at top employers include family coverage, dental, optical, and mental health services. Saudi Arabia has invested heavily in healthcare infrastructure, and the quality of private hospitals in Riyadh and Jeddah is excellent.

Education Allowance: SAR 15,000–50,000 per child per year at mid-to-senior levels. International schools in Riyadh charge SAR 30,000–80,000 annually, making this benefit critical for families. Some government entities and large private employers cover the full cost of international schooling.

End-of-Service Gratuity: Half a month’s salary for each of the first five years and one full month’s salary for each subsequent year (for employees who resign; higher for termination). For a senior Data Scientist earning SAR 35,000 who stays for seven years, the gratuity amounts to approximately SAR 157,500.

Annual Leave: Minimum 21 days per year, increasing to 30 days after five years of service. Many AI companies offer 25–30 days from day one to remain competitive with international employers.

Ramadan Hours: During Ramadan, working hours are reduced to six hours per day by law for all employees (Muslim and non-Muslim). This is a meaningful quality-of-life benefit that effectively provides an additional month of reduced hours annually.

Saudization and Its Impact on Data Science Hiring

Saudi Arabia’s Saudization (Nitaqat) program requires companies to maintain minimum percentages of Saudi nationals across their workforce. For the technology sector, the quotas are relatively moderate, and Data Science roles are often classified as specialized positions that are easier to fill with expatriates when qualified Saudi candidates are unavailable. However, the trend is clear: employers increasingly prefer Saudi nationals for data science roles, and KAUST and other Saudi universities are graduating growing numbers of qualified data science professionals each year.

For expatriate Data Scientists, this means that specialization is increasingly important. Generalist data science roles are more likely to be filled by Saudi nationals, while highly specialized positions (Arabic NLP researchers, MLOps engineers, deep learning specialists with publications, domain-specific ML experts) remain accessible to international talent. Demonstrating skills that complement rather than compete with the local talent pool is the most effective strategy for expatriate Data Scientists seeking roles in the kingdom.

Cost of Living and Savings Potential

Riyadh offers a significantly lower cost of living than Dubai, making Saudi Arabia an excellent destination for Data Scientists focused on wealth accumulation. A one-bedroom apartment in central Riyadh costs SAR 3,000–6,000 per month, roughly 30–40% less than comparable accommodations in Dubai. Groceries, dining, and transportation are also more affordable, though entertainment options have expanded dramatically since the launch of the General Entertainment Authority.

Jeddah is slightly more affordable than Riyadh, while Dhahran and the Eastern Province offer the lowest costs, particularly for employees in company-provided housing at Aramco or similar large employers. A mid-level Data Scientist earning a total package of SAR 30,000 (base plus housing) in Riyadh can reasonably save 40–55% of income, making Saudi Arabia one of the most financially rewarding destinations globally for data science professionals. The zero income tax environment means every riyal earned is retained, amplifying the savings potential relative to positions in taxed jurisdictions.

Career Growth and Future Outlook

The career trajectory for Data Scientists in Saudi Arabia is exceptionally strong. The kingdom’s commitment to AI investment through 2030 and beyond provides unusual long-term visibility into job market growth. SDAIA’s target of creating 20,000 AI-related jobs by 2030 alone suggests sustained demand for years to come. Data Scientists who establish themselves in the Saudi market now are positioning themselves for leadership roles as the ecosystem matures.

The KAUST-to-industry pipeline is maturing rapidly, with the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology producing world-class AI researchers who are increasingly choosing to remain in Saudi Arabia rather than relocating abroad. This growing research community creates opportunities for collaboration, knowledge exchange, and the kind of professional development that was previously only available in Silicon Valley, London, or Beijing.

For Data Scientists evaluating Saudi Arabia as a career destination, the combination of high salaries, zero income tax, low cost of living, massive national investment in AI infrastructure, and the sheer scale of available projects makes the kingdom one of the most compelling choices in the global data science job market.

Detailed Company-by-Company Salary Breakdown

See exact salary ranges at 15+ top Saudi AI and data science employers, including SDAIA, Aramco Analytics, and NEOM. Updated quarterly from verified employee data.

Saudization Compliance Strategies

Get guidance on positioning your application to meet Saudization requirements while maximizing compensation. Includes visa timeline estimates and documentation checklists.