Serviced Apartments in Saudi Arabia: A Compelling Extended-stay Play for Investors
/ Insights / Articles / Serviced Apartments in Saudi Arabia: A Compelling Extended-stay Play for Investors

Serviced Apartments in Saudi Arabia: A Compelling Extended-stay Play for Investors

Published on: Aug 07, 2026 | Author: Marketing & Communications

Serviced apartments and aparthotels monetize furnished units through nightly, weekly, and monthly stays. They typically include kitchens and living areas, plus cleaning and guest services that separate them from residential rentals. This positioning matters in Saudi Arabia because demand is not only transient. Corporate travelers, expatriates, and project teams tend to stay longer, and that can reduce guest-turnover costs compared with conventional short-stay accommodation. On the demand side, Saudi Arabia received 29.7 million inbound tourists in 2024, supporting a wider range of lodging formats across cities and destinations.

For investors tracking the phrase serviced apartments Saudi Arabia as an investable theme, the segment has visible scale and an explicit growth path. One market estimate values the Saudi Arabia serviced apartment market at USD 640.0 million in 2025, with a projection to USD 1,124.6 million by 2031, implying forecast growth of 9.85% annually. Market volume in paid occupied apartment-nights is expected to rise from 9.27 million in 2025 to 14.13 million in 2031, a 7.28% CAGR. Blended ADR is projected to increase from USD 62.5 to USD 72.5 per occupied apartment-night over the same period, with pricing improvement linked to supply upgrades and branded residences.

Market growth forecast
Market growth forecast

Why Riyadh, Pilgrimage Cities, and Mixed-Use Pipelines Matter

Geography shapes underwriting. Riyadh accounted for an estimated 37% of serviced-apartment revenue in 2025, reflecting demand concentrated around regional headquarters, consulting assignments, and government projects near commercial districts. At the national level, Saudi Arabia had 426,056 licensed accommodation rooms in August 2024, and a 67,614-room hospitality pipeline that expands distribution opportunities for operators and branded managers. A separate real estate view highlights even broader development ambition, citing a 320,000-room hospitality pipeline tied to visitor targets, alongside projects such as Jeddah Tower, revived in 2024 as a USD 7.2 billion development that includes a 200-key luxury hotel and 120 serviced apartments.

Broader hospitality trends also reinforce the case for extended stay. One estimate places Saudi Arabia’s hospitality market at USD 27.14 billion in 2025 and USD 29.02 billion in 2026, with a 2031 projection of USD 40.58 billion at a 6.93% CAGR. Within that landscape, serviced apartments are described as advancing at a 12.57% CAGR through 2031. Religious travel remains a demand pillar for western cities: Hajj attendance is cited at approximately 2.1 million in 2025 and 1.71 million in 2026, while Umrah pilgrims totaled 18 million in 2025 and are expected to exceed 20 million in 2026. Mixed-use schemes such as Wajhat Masar in Makkah add 24,000 hotel units and 13,000 homes, targeting Umrah pilgrims who stay longer than Hajj visitors.

Read also The Midscale Gap in Saudi Arabia: The Overlooked Select-service Hotel Investment

From an asset-class perspective, serviced apartments sit between hospitality and multifamily, so investors often analyze both operating performance and real-estate fundamentals. Institutional investors are cited as favoring rental yields averaging 6.8% for Riyadh Grade A apartments in 2024, and a separate luxury-residential view notes apartment towers in Jeddah yielding 6% gross returns. Strategy discussions in the market also emphasize product fit: developing serviced apartments—standalone or inside mixed-use—can capture extended-stay corporate demand and family leisure, while branded residences can allow developers to sell units to investors while still renting them as hotel inventory. In this context, operators with direct corporate contracting, centralized revenue management, and flexible unit configurations are positioned to differentiate versus undifferentiated single-property competitors.

What makes serviced apartments and aparthotels different from residential rentals in Saudi Arabia?

They monetize furnished units via nightly, weekly, and monthly stays and typically include kitchens and living areas plus cleaning and guest services. That operating model is positioned for longer corporate and project-based stays.

What is the projected growth outlook for Saudi Arabia’s serviced apartment market?

One estimate projects expansion from USD 640.0 million in 2025 to USD 1,124.6 million by 2031, with forecast CAGR of 9.85%. Paid occupied apartment-nights are projected to rise from 9.27 million in 2025 to 14.13 million in 2031.

Which city leads serviced-apartment revenue, and why?

Riyadh accounted for an estimated 37% of serviced-apartment revenue in 2025. The concentration is linked to regional headquarters activity, consulting assignments, and government projects near commercial districts.

How do pilgrimage and mixed-use developments support extended-stay demand?

Hajj attendance is cited at approximately 2.1 million in 2025 and 1.71 million in 2026, while Umrah pilgrims totaled 18 million in 2025 and are expected to exceed 20 million in 2026. Projects like Wajhat Masar in Makkah add 24,000 hotel units and 13,000 homes aimed at Umrah visitors who spend longer stays.

How should investors think about the serviced apartments topic in Saudi Arabia when underwriting returns?

Sources highlight rental yields averaging 6.8% for Riyadh Grade A apartments in 2024 and 6% gross returns for Jeddah apartment towers. They also point to operating levers such as corporate contracting, centralized revenue management, and flexible unit configurations.

Unlock the potential of your business in dynamic markets with our expert consulting services.

With over 40 years of excellence, we provide innovative solutions tailored to your business needs.

Contact Us Today
Contact Us Today

/ Contact Us

Let’s discuss how we can support your tourism strategy in Saudi Arabia.

 

  • No results found

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.