Spending in Dhahran: all activities

Card spending in Dhahran (الظهران) across 30 activities, from the point-of-sale statistics published by Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), monthly since January 2024 (Jumada al-Akhirah – Rajab 1445 AH). Official figures · match SAMA's published figures within rounding Coverage: cards only, ~57% of personal spending

Card spending in Dhahran · week 13–19 September 2026 · 2–8 Rabi' al-Akhir 1448 AH

51.0 SAR million

−0.5% against the same week last year · rank 26 of 60 cities · 0.4% of Saudi Arabia's spending this week

What this means for your decisionLast 3 months: Dhahran +4.4% against +6.0% for Saudi Arabia, so the market here is growing more slowly than Saudi Arabia. Compare your shop's growth with your city's growth, not with Saudi Arabia's: if it is slower than the city, the gap comes from the shop, not the market.

SAR million per week · oldest on the left, newest on the right (in amber) · axis: Gregorian month, then Hijri month (Umm al-Qura). Highest week 64.7, lowest 44.4.

Source: Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), weekly point-of-sale bulletins (value of transactions), latest published week 13–19 September 2026 · 2–8 Rabi' al-Akhir 1448 AH. Attributed to SAMA; the analysis is ours.

Last 12 months to August 2026 (Safar – Rabi' al-Awwal 1448 AH)

2,718SAR million, all spending · +4.4% in the last 3 months against last year · SAMA

18,885SAR per person per year: 12 months of spending ÷ 2022 Census population (General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT))

143,936population · 2022 Census (General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT))

Transactions in the same week

0.8million transactions · +0.5% against the same week last year

62.4SAR average transaction value (value ÷ number) · −1.0% against the same week last year

This week in the Spending Index newsletter, issue 2: what changed and why

Data coverage: these figures are card payments (point of sale) only: about 57% of personal spending in 2025; the rest is cash and does not appear here. Part of the growth is a shift from cash to cards, not new demand: in 2025, card payments in Saudi Arabia grew +5.8%, but including cash withdrawals the growth is +1.9%. Read the figures as a trend and a comparison between cities and activities, not as an absolute market size.

Interactive analysis for Dhahran(Arabic)

Activities ranked

Each activity by its spending over the last 12 months to August 2026 (Safar – Rabi' al-Awwal 1448 AH), its growth over the last 3 months against the same months a year earlier, and its share of the city's spending. Source: SAMA (point of sale).

#	Activity	12 months, SAR million	3 months vs last year	Share of city
01	Groceries and food	600	+16.9%	22.1%
02	Restaurants and cafés	346	−6.8%	12.7%
03	Furniture and furnishings	337	−28.1%	12.4%
04	Clothing and footwear	322	+21.1%	11.8%
05	Health	191	+28.3%	7.0%
06	Other	163	−23.4%	6.0%
07	Education	138	+42.2%	5.1%
08	Fuel stations	128	−35.4%	4.7%
09	Professional services	114	+9.2%	4.2%
10	Medical services	108	+125.9%	4.0%
11	Jewellery	75	−3.0%	2.8%
12	Electronics	73	+1158.3%	2.7%
13	Recreation and culture	68	+27.3%	2.5%
14	Transport	67	+5.8%	2.5%
15	Recreation	62	+25.2%	2.3%
16	Pharmacies	49	−43.3%	1.8%
17	Vehicle trade	42	+17.6%	1.6%
18	Personal care	35	+3.1%	1.3%
19	Hotels	29	+75.8%	1.1%
20	Bakeries and sweets	26	+4.3%	1.0%
21	Building materials	16	−18.4%	0.6%
22	Vehicle maintenance	15	+9.0%	0.6%
23	Laundries	13	−1.2%	0.5%
24	Telecommunications	10	+32.7%	0.4%
25	Car rental	6	−59.7%	0.2%
26	Books and stationery	5	+60.3%	0.2%
27	Public utilities	2	−65.3%	0.1%
28	Other transport	2	+122.6%	0.1%
29	Airlines	2	−32.1%	0.1%

Detailed pages

Restaurants and cafés in Dhahran Groceries and food in Dhahran Bakeries and sweets in Dhahran Total spending in Dhahran

Growth is measured against the same months of the previous year. Part of the growth in card payments is a shift from cash, not new demand. A business decision needs a field visit and your own figures.

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