MAKKAH — More than 15.2 million people performed Umrah in Saudi Arabia during the first quarter of 2026, including approximately 9.5 million domestic performers, according to data released by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT).

The total number of Umrah performers reached 15,233,767 during the quarter. Males accounted for 59.4 percent of the total, while females represented 40.6 percent. Saudi citizens made up 28.9 percent of all Umrah performers.

International Umrah performers totaled 5,769,271, including 2,777,904 males and 2,991,367 females. Males accounted for 48.2 percent of international performers, while females represented 51.8 percent.

Air travel remained the main entry route for international Umrah performers, accounting for 86 percent of arrivals. Land ports accounted for 13.6 percent, while 0.4 percent entered through seaports.

GASTAT’s figure showing distribution of domestic Umrah performers by gender and nationality (million)

Domestic Umrah performers numbered approximately 9,464,496, including 4,396,828 Saudis, representing 46.5 percent, and 5,067,668 non-Saudis, who accounted for 53.5 percent. Male domestic performers totaled around 6,265,810, or 66.2 percent, while females numbered approximately 3,198,686, representing 33.8 percent.

Of the domestic performers, 9,026,108 performed Umrah once, while 438,388 performed the ritual more than once, representing 4.6 percent of the domestic total. Around 75.4 percent performed Umrah with their families, compared with 17.2 percent who performed individually and 7.4 percent who did so with friends.

Makkah recorded the highest number of domestic Umrah performers among the Kingdom’s regions, with 4,066,669, accounting for 43 percent of the total. Riyadh followed with 2,026,029 performers, representing 21.4 percent. The Northern Borders Region recorded the lowest number, with 41,718 domestic performers, or 0.4 percent.

Among international Umrah performers, January recorded the highest monthly figure at 2,237,418, representing 38.8 percent of the quarterly total, while March recorded the lowest at 1,390,130. Among domestic performers, February recorded the highest monthly figure at 4,558,570, accounting for 48.2 percent of the quarterly total, while January recorded the lowest at 1,301,343.

GASTAT’s figure showing distribution of visitors to Medinah by gender and visitor type (million).

By age group, international Umrah performers aged 55–64 represented the largest share at 18.8 percent, while those aged 0–14 accounted for the smallest share at 8 percent. Among domestic performers, the 25–34 age group represented the largest share at 25.3 percent, while people aged 65 and above accounted for the smallest share at 2.8 percent.

The GASTAT report also showed that 3,741,460 international visitors traveled to Madinah during the first quarter, while domestic visitors traveling for religious purposes totaled 1,984,193.

Among domestic religious visitors to Madinah, 975,278 were Saudi citizens, representing 49.2 percent, while 1,008,915 were non-Saudis, accounting for 50.8 percent.

Source:Saudi Gazette