Saudi Arabia recorded more than 15.2 million Umrah performers during the first quarter of 2026, according to figures released by the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) on Sunday, 23 August. The data offers one of the clearest pictures yet of who is performing the lesser pilgrimage, when they arrive, and how they travel.
A total of 15,233,767 people performed Umrah between January and March, the authority reported. Men accounted for 59.4 percent of performers and women 40.6 percent. Domestic performers made up nearly two-thirds of the total, underlining how deeply the pilgrimage is woven into daily religious life inside the Kingdom.
Domestic pilgrims dominate the numbers
Of the total, roughly 9.46 million were domestic performers, compared with 5.77 million who arrived from outside Saudi Arabia. Saudi nationals alone accounted for 28.9 percent of all Umrah performers during the quarter.
The GASTAT report highlighted how families shape domestic pilgrimage. Family trips were the most common type of internal journey, accounting for 75.4 percent of domestic performers. Individual journeys represented 17.2 percent, while trips taken with friends made up 7.4 percent.
Domestic activity peaked in February, when 4.56 million internal performers were recorded, nearly half the quarterly total. The Makkah region itself produced the largest share of domestic pilgrims, at about 4.07 million or 43 percent, followed by Riyadh with 2.03 million. The Northern Borders region recorded the fewest, at 41,718.
Most domestic pilgrims performed Umrah once during the quarter. About 9.03 million did so a single time, while 438,388 performed it more than once.
International arrivals travel mostly by air
The number of external Umrah performers reached 5,769,271 in the first quarter. Among international pilgrims, women slightly outnumbered men, accounting for 51.9 percent against 48.2 percent. It is a notable detail in a pilgrimage often assumed to draw more male travellers from abroad.
Air travel remained overwhelmingly the preferred route. According to GASTAT, 86 percent of international pilgrims arrived by air, while land crossings accounted for 13.6 percent and seaports just 0.4 percent. January drew the highest monthly figure of external performers, at 2.24 million, or 38.8 percent of the quarterly total. March recorded the lowest, at about 1.39 million.
The age profiles of domestic and international pilgrims differed. Among external performers, the 55 to 64 age group formed the largest share at 18.8 percent, reflecting the tendency of overseas Muslims to undertake the journey later in life. For internal performers, the 25 to 34 age group led with 25.3 percent.
Madinah visits and the wider season
Beyond Makkah, GASTAT reported 3.74 million external visitors to Madinah for religious purposes during the quarter, alongside nearly 1.98 million internal visitors, bringing the combined total to about 5.7 million. Visiting the Prophet's Mosque in Madinah, while not part of Umrah itself, remains a cherished part of the journey for most pilgrims.
The figures arrive as the 1448 AH Umrah season, which opened on 31 May following the conclusion of the 1447 AH Hajj, continues to gather pace. The Kingdom welcomed 931,500 Umrah pilgrims in the opening weeks of the new season, a 22.5 percent rise in visa arrivals compared with the same period a year earlier.
The season runs until 23 March 2027, with the final date for issuing Umrah visas set for 9 March 2027. Pilgrims must enter Saudi Arabia by 23 March and depart by 7 April. Permits and related services are handled through Nusuk, the Kingdom's unified digital platform.
Practical guidance for pilgrims: Those planning Umrah in the months ahead should book early through an approved provider on the Nusuk platform, as demand tends to climb sharply toward Ramadan. Travellers arriving by air should confirm that their permit is issued and linked before departure, allow extra time during peak January and February windows, and keep documentation accessible on the Nusuk app throughout the trip.