KSA's Hiring Landscape in Numbers

Jisr, a Saudi-based HR & Finance platform that operates across MENA, has published a report on the state of hiring in Saudi Arabia, highlighting key trends and figures based on their extensive examination of labor market data from January 2024 to July 2025.

From a data set that included over 4,700 companies encompassing 700,000 employees across various industries, Jisr found that Saudi Arabia’s labour market saw a sharp acceleration in hiring activity. Average monthly hires rose from just under 16,000 in 2024 to more than 24,000 in the first seven months of 2025, representing a year-on-year increase of over 50 percent, with January 2025 seeing the highest number of hires during the period studied (34,682).

The report also highlights changes in how organisations approach recruitment planning. Around two-thirds of surveyed companies said they actively track labour market indicators before making hiring decisions, while nearly three-quarters reported an increase in job applications over the past year. Despite this, 62.7% of surveyed companies found it difficult to fill technical or specialized roles.

However, hiring growth has not been uniform across the Kingdom. Riyadh continues to dominate recruitment activity, accounting for the largest share of new hires and recording a strong increase in monthly averages year-on-year. While the Eastern Province and Mecca also performed strongly, areas such as Al-Qassim and Medina showed more moderate (but still positive) increases in hiring volumes.

Seasonality remains a defining feature of the Saudi hiring landscape. The report identifies recurring peaks early and later in the calendar year, alongside predictable slowdowns during Ramadan and major holiday periods.

Taken together, the findings suggest a labour market that is both expanding and becoming more structured, with employers relying increasingly on data, digital tools, and forward planning to manage growing recruitment demands through 2026.