More than one-third of the elderly in Saudi Arabia have mild-to-severe mobility limitations in terms of walking and climbing stairs, based on secondary analysis of the 2025 national Elderly Survey.
Key Findings
Results
A substantial proportion of elderly individuals in Saudi Arabia experienced mild difficulty with mobility, specifically walking and climbing stairs.
25.5% of surveyed elderly individuals experienced mild difficulty in mobility
Data were drawn from the 2025 Elderly Survey administered by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) of Saudi Arabia
The survey covered 32,745 households yielding a weighted national population of approximately 1,758,737 individuals
The survey included both Saudi and non-Saudi residents from 13 administrative regions across the kingdom
Results
10.8% of elderly individuals in Saudi Arabia experienced severe difficulty with mobility in terms of walking and climbing stairs.
Combined with the 25.5% reporting mild difficulty, more than one-third of elderly individuals had some degree of mobility limitation
Mobility limitations were specifically defined in terms of walking and stair climbing
The survey design was national in scope, covering all 13 administrative regions of Saudi Arabia
Results
The majority of elderly individuals surveyed in Saudi Arabia were not physically active.
61.8% of the elderly individuals were not physically active
Physical inactivity was assessed as part of the 2025 Elderly Survey
This finding was observed in a sample representing a weighted national population of approximately 1,758,737 individuals
Results
Nearly half of the elderly population in Saudi Arabia had multiple chronic conditions.
44.7% of individuals had multiple chronic conditions
25.5% had 1 chronic condition
29.8% had no chronic conditions
The prevalence of multimorbidity was assessed alongside mobility limitations in the same national survey
Results
The largest age group within the surveyed elderly population was the youngest elderly cohort, aged 60 to 64 years.
42% of the surveyed individuals were aged 60 to 64 years
The survey targeted elderly residents, with the minimum age threshold appearing to be 60 years
Both Saudi and non-Saudi residents were included in the survey sample
Background
Mobility limitations among the elderly are associated with limitations in activities of daily living, higher annual healthcare expenditure, more hospitalizations, and increased mortality.
These associations were cited as the rationale for investigating mobility limitation prevalence in Saudi Arabia
Prior evidence on the prevalence of mobility limitation among the elderly in Saudi Arabia was described as limited
The study used a secondary analysis design based on existing national survey data
What This Means
This research analyzed a large national survey of elderly people living in Saudi Arabia to understand how common mobility problems — specifically difficulty walking and climbing stairs — are among this population. The survey, conducted in 2025 by Saudi Arabia's official statistics authority, covered over 32,000 households and represented nearly 1.8 million elderly residents across all regions of the country. The findings showed that more than one in three elderly people had some level of difficulty with walking and climbing stairs: about one in four had mild difficulty, and roughly one in ten had severe difficulty.
The study also found that physical inactivity was widespread, with nearly two-thirds of elderly participants reporting they were not physically active. Additionally, almost half had multiple chronic health conditions, while only about 30% had no chronic conditions at all. The largest group within the elderly population surveyed was those aged 60 to 64, representing 42% of participants.
This research matters because mobility limitations in older adults are linked to serious consequences, including difficulty with everyday tasks like bathing and dressing, more frequent hospitalizations, higher healthcare costs, and greater risk of death. By establishing a clear picture of how common these limitations are in Saudi Arabia — a topic that previously lacked national-level data — this study provides a foundation for public health planning and the development of programs to support healthy aging and physical activity among the country's growing elderly population.
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Alqahtani S. (2026). Prevalence of mobility limitations among the elderly in Saudi Arabia: A secondary analysis of the 2025 Elderly Survey.. Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1097/MD.0000000000051152