Home/Countries/Kuwait

Arabian Peninsula

Kuwait

Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

Muslim population74.6%of the population

Population4.9 millionpeople (current)

CapitalKuwait CityUTC+3

Currency0.31 = $1Kuwaiti dinars (KD) (2024)

Country basics

Kuwait is a constitutional emirate at the head of the Persian Gulf, north of Saudi Arabia.

Kuwait is an emirate with Kuwait City as its capital and Arabic as its official language, bordering Iraq and Saudi Arabia. The dinar is the currency, and crude oil accounts for the large majority of export and government revenue.

Official name

State of Kuwait

Region

Asia · Western Asia

Government

Unitary constitutional monarchy

Time zonesCheck the offset for your own city

UTC+03:00

Driving side

Right

Phone code

+965

Currency

Kuwaiti dinar (KWD, د.ك)

Member of

Arab League; UN; OPEC

Website

https://www.e.gov.kw

Faith and language

Religions

Muslim (official) 74.6%, Christian 18.2%, other and unspecified 7.2%

Languages

Arabic

People and cities

Population

4.9 million (current)

Median ageHalf the population is younger than this

30.4 years (2025)

Living in cities

100% (2023)

Largest cities

Kuwait (capital) 3.298 million

Money and cost of living

Exchange rateYearly average; check today’s rate before you budget

0.31 Kuwaiti dinars (KD) per US dollar (2024)

Income per personGDP per person, adjusted for local prices (2021 dollars)

$45,400 (2024)

InflationHow much prices rose over the year

2.9% (2024)

Unemployment

2.2% (2024)

Spent on foodShare of an average household’s spending

19.2% (2023)

Health and daily life

Life expectancy

79.6 years (2024)

Doctors

2.27 per 1,000 people (2020)

Hospital beds

2.4 per 1,000 people (2020)

Safe drinking water

100% of people (2022)

Electricity

100% of people (2022)

Internet users

100% of people (2023)

Literacy

96.5% of adults (2020)

Land and climate

Climate

Dry desert; intensely hot summers; short, cool winters

SizeSlightly smaller than New Jersey

17,818 sq km

Natural hazards

Sudden cloudbursts are common from October to April and bring heavy rain, which can damage roads and houses; sandstorms and dust storms occur throughout the year but are most common between March and August

National holiday

National Day, 25 February (1950)