Spending in Qatif: all activities

Card spending in Qatif (القطيف) 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 Qatif · week 13–19 September 2026 · 2–8 Rabi' al-Akhir 1448 AH

93.4 SAR million

+1.9% against the same week last year · rank 19 of 60 cities · 0.7% of Saudi Arabia's spending this week

What this means for your decisionLast 3 months: Qatif +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 114.2, lowest 62.7.

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)

4,924SAR million, all spending · +4.4% in the last 3 months against last year · SAMA

56,385SAR per person per year: 12 months of spending ÷ 2022 Census population (General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT))

87,332population · 2022 Census (General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT))

Transactions in the same week

1.6million transactions · +2.9% against the same week last year

59.9SAR 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 Qatif(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	1,002	+30.3%	20.3%
02	Restaurants and cafés	817	+2.4%	16.6%
03	Other	645	+38.5%	13.1%
04	Transport	412	+12.6%	8.4%
05	Health	369	+1.8%	7.5%
06	Professional services	282	−52.2%	5.7%
07	Clothing and footwear	258	+12.9%	5.2%
08	Vehicle trade	255	−1.0%	5.2%
09	Medical services	214	+16.2%	4.3%
10	Electronics	213	+89.7%	4.3%
11	Fuel stations	212	−47.2%	4.3%
12	Furniture and furnishings	164	−12.6%	3.3%
13	Bakeries and sweets	144	+0.8%	2.9%
14	Building materials	139	+8.6%	2.8%
15	Pharmacies	112	−22.2%	2.3%
16	Vehicle maintenance	98	+30.3%	2.0%
17	Recreation and culture	89	+1.7%	1.8%
18	Recreation	71	+0.8%	1.4%
19	Telecommunications	51	+26.5%	1.0%
20	Jewellery	48	+7.9%	1.0%
21	Personal care	44	+15.8%	0.9%
22	Education	39	+3.8%	0.8%
23	Airlines	36	+92.3%	0.7%
24	Laundries	20	+4.7%	0.4%
25	Public utilities	19	−23.3%	0.4%
26	Books and stationery	18	+4.7%	0.4%
27	Car rental	15	−13.3%	0.3%
28	Other transport	5	−47.7%	0.1%
29	Freight and courier	2	—	0.0%
30	Hotels	2	+491.6%	0.0%

Detailed pages

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

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.

More cities: all cities.