SAMA: 13 Billion Riyal POS Sales Last Week

Electronic Payment System

The value of POS sales in Saudi Arabia reached about 13.0 billion riyals in the week ending July 18, 2026, compared to about 14.2 billion riyals in the previous week.

According to the weekly POS operations report issued by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), the number of transactions executed reached about 236.7 million in the week ending, compared to about 250.5 million transactions in the previous week.

POS transactions represent consumer spending via debit and credit cards in large shopping centers, retail stores, pharmacies, and others.

It is noted from the data that POS sales value increases in weeks coinciding with salary disbursement for government employees (on the 27th of each month), as well as weeks coinciding with school holidays and weeks preceding Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha, while sales value declines in weeks preceding salary disbursement and weeks coinciding with the start of school after holidays.

The 4-week moving average reached about 14.2 billion riyals. The value of POS transactions rose during 2025 compared to 2024, 2023, and 2022, with average sales values ranging between 11.4 and 15.3 billion riyals, compared to between 11.5 and 13.8 billion riyals in 2024, between 10.4 and 12.7 billion riyals in 2023, and between 9.4 and 11.6 billion riyals in 2022, as shown in the following chart:

By sector, consumer spending in the week ending July 18 focused on the food and beverages sector at 15.6% worth 2.03 billion riyals, and the restaurants and cafes sector at 13.2% worth 1.72 billion riyals.

Regarding the distribution of consumer spending by city in the week ending July 18, 2026, Riyadh topped with about 4.36 billion riyals, representing 33.5% of total sales value, followed by Jeddah with 1.85 billion riyals and 14.2%.

According to the latest data from the Saudi Central Bank, the share of electronic payments in the retail (individuals) sector reached 85% of total payment transactions executed by individuals in the Kingdom in 2025, thereby exceeding the target set by the Financial Sector Development Program (one of the Kingdom's Vision 2030 programs), which aimed to achieve 70% electronic payments by 2025.

In recent years, the Kingdom has witnessed significant progress and rapid growth in the adoption of electronic payment methods, as a result of the many strategic efforts and initiatives launched by the Saudi Central Bank in cooperation with the financial sector to support the growth of the payments sector and stimulate the use of diverse electronic payment options in the Kingdom.

Share of Electronic Payments in Retail - Individuals

Year

Percentage

2021

57%

2022

62%

2023

70%

2024

79%

2025

85%

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