Friday–Saturday since 2013
Saudi Arabia’s weekend was Thursday and Friday until a royal order issued on 23 June 2013 moved it to Friday and Saturday, effective Saturday 29 June 2013, making the working week Sunday to Thursday. The stated aim was to reduce the negative effects and lost economic opportunities caused by working days that differed from regional and international counterparts, and it aligned the Kingdom with the other GCC states. For periods before 29 June 2013, choose “Thursday & Friday (before 29 June 2013)” in the Working Days Calculator; if a period spans the change, calculate each part with its own weekend and add them.
Working days per month and year
With a Friday–Saturday weekend and before public holidays:
| Period | Total days | Working days |
|---|---|---|
| November 2026 | 30 | 22 |
| September 2026 | 30 | 22 |
| All of 2026 | 365 | 261 |
A month usually has 20–23 working days, depending on its length and the weekday it starts on.
Public holidays
Then subtract public holidays, typically the Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha breaks, National Day (23 September) and Founding Day (22 February). Eid break lengths differ between sectors and years and depend on moon sighting, so our tools let you add them yourself. A holiday that falls on Friday or Saturday is not subtracted twice; the Working Days Calculator handles that automatically.
Counting working days
- Count the total days (inclusive if you are counting office days).
- Multiply the number of full weeks by 5.
- For the leftover days, count those that are not Friday or Saturday.
- Subtract holidays that fall on working days.
Example: November 2026 starts on a Sunday and has 30 days: 4 full weeks (20 working days) plus Sunday and Monday (2 more) = 22 working days.
Deadlines in working days
Deadlines like “within 10 working days” usually don’t count the start day: from Thursday 1 October 2026, 10 working days ends on Thursday 15 October 2026. For legal notice periods, check the regulation or authority, as some count calendar days instead.
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