HEAD TO HEAD
Israel vs Saudi Arabia
Verdict
Saudi Arabia holds a 67–33 advantage over Israel on the Relative Advantage Index, a clear margin.
The margin is driven by military spending (63% of the combined total, $83.2bn) and economic size (GDP) (70% of the combined total, $1.2tn).
1 factor — nuclear warheads — could not be scored because the figure is unpublished for at least one side. Those factors are excluded and the remaining weights renormalised, never substituted.
Factor by factor
| Factor | Israel | Share | Saudi Arabia | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Military spending SIPRI Milex | $48.3bn | 37%63% | $83.2bn | 33% |
Economic size (GDP) World Bank WDI | $540bn | 30%70% | $1.2tn | 27% |
Active personnel COW NMC | 170.0k | 40%60% | 257.0k | 20% |
Logistics & power projection OurAirports | 14 | 22%78% | 50 | 20% |
Shares are each side's portion of the combined total for that factor. Weights are renormalised across the factors both sides publish — see the methodology. Data read 2026-10-22.
