Is `Ar`ar safe?
Saudi Arabia · Asia · data updated 2026-09-04
`Ar`ar is a city in Saudi Arabia, home to about 208k people, and one of 6,168 cities worldwide ranked on this site from published safety data. It currently ranks 197 of 6,168, with a safety score of 85.7 out of 100, which puts it in the top band of the ranking.
Emergency 911 (ambulance, fire, police)
- US State Department: Reconsider travelOfficial travel advisory level 3 of 4 for Saudi Arabia, updated 2026-03-12.
- UK FCDO advises against all travel to parts of this country1 named areas - see "areas to avoid" below.
- Same-sex activity criminalized - death penalty in lawLaw on the books in Saudi Arabia as of 2025 (OWID legal-status series) - enforcement varies, but LGBTQ+ travelers face legal risk.
Areas the UK FCDO advises against visiting country
- Saudi Arabia-Yemen border
Named in the official UK travel advice for Saudi Arabia (in full or in part - the advisory lists exact boundaries and exceptions). These are country-level warnings and may be far from `Ar`ar.
How safe is `Ar`ar really?
No published homicide figure exists for `Ar`ar itself, so the national rate stands in: Saudi Arabia recorded 0.8 homicides per 100,000 people in 2024 - well below the global city median. The city itself may be safer or more dangerous than its country's average.
What the travel advisories say
The US State Department currently rates Saudi Arabia at level 3 of 4 - "Reconsider travel" (updated 2026-03-12). The UK Foreign Office advises against all travel to parts of this country, naming 1 specific areas - listed above with the official advisory linked for exact boundaries and exceptions. Both advisories are country-level: no official source publishes verified neighborhood-level crime guidance for individual cities, which is why this page reports named areas only where an official source names them.
What to watch out for in Saudi Arabia
Terrorism in Saudi Arabia · Conflict affecting Lebanon · Political situation · Crime · Personal ID · Ramadan · Dress code · Religion · Alcohol laws and bans · Illegal drugs penalties · Sexual relations outside of marriage · Pregnancy outside of marriage · Filming, photography and other media restrictions · Public statements and criticism · +10 more
Topic headings from the official UK FCDO travel advice for Saudi Arabia — country-level, not specific to `Ar`ar. Read what each one says →
The numbers
- Homicide rate
- 0.8 /100knational rate, 2024
- Conflict deaths
- 0within 100 km, 2022-2024 (UCDP)
- Income inequality
- no datacountry,
- Human development
- HDI 0.900country, 2023
- Income
- $74,400/yrGNI per capita PPP · context only, not scored
- Population
- 208kurban centre · 4,845/km²
Country context for travelers
- Road deaths
- 35.9 /100kWHO, 2019 · often the biggest real travel risk
- Political stability
- 65/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · higher = more stable
- Rule of law
- 61/100World Bank WGI, 2024 · police and courts reliability
- Corruption perceptions
- 57/100Transparency International, 2025 · higher = cleaner
- Natural-hazard risk
- 3.1/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Women, Peace & Security
- 0.74Georgetown WPS Index, 2025 · 0-1, higher = better
- Air quality
- 73.5 µg/m³PM2.5 annual mean, 2023 · WHO guideline is 5
- Safely managed drinking water
- no dataof the population · WHO/UNICEF JMP
- Healthcare capacity
- 3.4 doctors /1k2.4 hospital beds per 1,000
- Malaria
- 0 /1k at riskWHO, 2024 · listed for endemic countries only
Natural hazards in Saudi Arabia
- Drought
- 5.0/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Flood
- 4.7/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
- Earthquake
- 1.8/10EU INFORM, 2026 · higher = riskier
Hazard types scoring under 1 out of 10 are not listed. These describe Saudi Arabia as a whole, not `Ar`ar specifically.
Same-sex sexual activity is criminalized in Saudi Arabia, with the death penalty applying in law (as of 2025). This describes the law on the books, not necessarily enforcement practice.
All country-level figures shared by every city in Saudi Arabia; none of them affect the safety score.
How the score works
One fixed, calibrated mix for every city: 40% homicide · 25% peace · 25% equality · 10% HDI. Homicide and conflict deaths are measured outcomes; income inequality carries the structural share because it predicts real city violence far better than national income (which is shown above but scored at zero). Each factor maps to 0-100 against fixed anchors, missing data drops out and is never estimated, and cities with data behind less than half the weighting get “no data” instead of a score. For `Ar`ar that gives 85.7/100. Full methodology, anchors and sources →
`Ar`ar compared with Al-Najaf
| Measure | `Ar`ar | Al-Najaf | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safety score | 85.7 | 62.6 | +23.1 — better for `Ar`ar |
| Homicide ratecity-measured where published, otherwise the national rate | 0.8 /100k | 9.5 /100k | −8.7 /100k — better for `Ar`ar |
| Conflict deaths within 100 km | 0 | 1 | −1 — better for `Ar`ar |
| Income inequality (Gini) | no data | 29.8 | — |
| Human development (HDI) | 0.900 | 0.695 | +0.205 — better for `Ar`ar |
| Road deaths | 35.9 /100k | 27.3 /100k | +8.6 /100k — better for Al-Najaf |
| Rule of law | 61/100 | 34/100 | +27/100 — better for `Ar`ar |
| Corruption perceptions | 57/100 | 28/100 | +29/100 — better for `Ar`ar |
| Air quality (PM2.5) | 73.5 µg/m³ | 49.5 µg/m³ | +24.0 µg/m³ — better for Al-Najaf |
| Natural-hazard risk | 3.1/10 | 5.7/10 | −2.6/10 — better for `Ar`ar |
Differences are plain arithmetic between the two stored figures — nothing is modelled. Country-level rows describe the two countries, not the cities themselves. Full report for Al-Najaf →
Nearby cities
- Sakaka 85.7
- Al-Najaf, Iraq 62.6
- Karbala, Iraq 56.3
- Al-Hirah, Iraq 64.5
- Al Kifl, Iraq 59.2
- Ramadi, Iraq 53.6
- Al Qurayyat 85.7
- Ash Shamiya, Iraq 64.5
See `Ar`ar on the interactive map → · Safest cities in Asia → · Full travel briefings →