Hiring in Saudi Arabia
Hiring in Saudi Arabia.
A practical guide for VC-backed SaaS, fintech and AI companies building a team in KSA: salaries, Saudization, packages and how to hire fast.
At a glance
- ZeroPersonal income tax on salaries
- 5Nitaqat bands, Platinum to Red
- 55+Roles in our 2025 KSA benchmark
- RiyadhThe GCC's emerging SaaS hub
Key facts
What to know before you hire.
Where is the talent?
Riyadh. It is fast becoming the GCC's SaaS hub, and the Saudi Central Bank's fintech sandbox is drawing fintech talent there too.
Is there income tax?
No personal income tax on salaries, so candidates compare the whole package: housing and transport allowances, health cover, annual flights, bonuses and, more and more, equity.
Which roles are hardest to fill?
Generative AI engineers, fintech product managers, NLP and LLM specialists, cloud architects, cybersecurity engineers and AI solutions engineers. Sign-on bonuses are now standard for the top profiles.
How are salaries moving?
Unevenly. AI, cloud, fintech product and cybersecurity pay is rising fastest. Generalist and back-office pay is flat, so benchmark role by role.
Salaries
Monthly salaries in KSA, 2025.
Base salary per month in Saudi riyals, from HAILO's 2025 KSA Salary Benchmark: 55+ roles across SaaS, fintech and AI.
| Role | Level | Monthly base (SAR) |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Revenue Officer (CRO)Executive | Executive | 75,000 to 130,000 |
| Chief Technology Officer (CTO)Executive | Executive | 80,000 to 130,000 |
| Sales Director / VP SalesSenior | Senior | 50,000 to 90,000 |
| Enterprise Account ExecutiveSenior | Senior | 28,000 to 50,000 |
| SDR / BDRJunior | Junior | 9,000 to 17,000 |
| Customer Success ManagerMid | Mid | 13,000 to 25,000 |
| Marketing DirectorSenior | Senior | 32,000 to 60,000 |
| Product ManagerMid | Mid | 18,000 to 32,000 |
| Software Engineer (Senior)Senior | Senior | 28,000 to 44,000 |
| Software Engineer (Mid)Mid | Mid | 16,000 to 28,000 |
| Cloud / Solutions ArchitectSenior | Senior | 32,000 to 55,000 |
| AI/ML Engineer (Senior)Senior | Senior | 32,000 to 55,000 |
| Generative AI EngineerSenior | Senior | 35,000 to 60,000 |
| Data Scientist (Mid)Mid | Mid | 16,000 to 30,000 |
| Talent Acquisition ManagerMid | Mid | 20,000 to 38,000 |
Saudization
Plan Saudization from the first hire.
Under Nitaqat, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development places every private company in one of five bands, from Platinum to Red, based on the share of Saudi nationals in its workforce against the target for its activity and size. The band decides access to work visas and government services, and a company in the Red band cannot get new work visas. Saudi employees count once their contracts are documented on Qiwa, the ministry's platform.
In practice, plan two pipelines from the first hire: international specialists, and Saudi national talent.
A summary, not legal advice. Check the current target for your activity on Qiwa.
The hard part
Why hiring in KSA takes longer than planned.
- 01
The best people aren't on job boards
The strongest Saudi sellers and engineers are not applying. They have to be mapped and approached.
- 02
Agencies send the same CVs
Every agency works the same small pool, so you see the candidates your competitors saw last week.
- 03
Base salary alone loses candidates
International firms bring London and New York pay structures, and candidates weigh the total package.
How long does it take to hire in Saudi Arabia?
It depends on the role and how the search is run. With HAILO, your recruiter is live on roles within 3 days, and our speed guarantee covers role go-live to accepted offer in 35 days. Lucidya's average time to hire with HAILO is 20 days.
What is Nitaqat?
Nitaqat is Saudi Arabia's Saudization programme. It places every private company in one of five bands, from Platinum to Red, based on the share of Saudi nationals it employs, and the band decides access to work visas and government services.
How much does a software engineer earn in Saudi Arabia?
In HAILO's 2025 KSA benchmark, a senior software engineer earns SAR 28,000 to 44,000 a month, mid level SAR 16,000 to 28,000 and junior SAR 9,000 to 15,000, base salary.
How much does an account executive earn in Saudi Arabia?
In HAILO's 2025 KSA benchmark, an enterprise account executive earns SAR 28,000 to 50,000 a month in base salary, and a sales director or VP Sales SAR 50,000 to 90,000.