Riyadh

Saudi Arabia / Nejd / Riyadh

OVERVIEW

Contraception (Birth Control)

General Note: There are many types of contraceptives, also known as "birth control," including IUDs, oral contraceptives, patches, shots, and condoms, etc. If you would like to view a full list, click here.

Laws & Social Stigmas

In Saudi Arabia, you need a prescription to obtain birth control.

According to a 2015 UN report, it was found that 36.8% of Saudi women (who are married/in unions and of reproductive age) use some form of contraception, and 24.1% of Saudi women have unmet family planning needs. The most common methods were found to be IUDs (11.6%), condoms (6.6%), birth control pills (6.5%), and female sterilization (4.2%). There were very low rates of usage for injectables (1.2%) and implants (0.1%).

More information

• Blog post from 2015 about birth control in Saudi Arabia
• Study on Awareness and Use of Contraceptives Among Saudi Women Attending Primary Care Centers in Al-Qassim, Saudi Arabia

What to Get & Where to Get It

• If you are interested in purchasing birth control pills, there are at least 15 brands available in Saudi Arabia. Nearly all of the brands come from pharmaceutical companies in Germany, United Kingdom and United States. Some of the brands you can expect to see are Diane, Diane-35, Gynera, Gynovlar, Loestrin 20, Loestrin 30, Logynon, Marvelon, Microgynon-30, Minulet, Nordette, Norinyl-1, Ovulen 50 and Yasmin.
• If you want a contraceptive shot/injectable, you can find Depo-Provera SAS 150mg/ml in Saudi Arabia.
• We don't know if contraceptive patches, contraceptive implants or contraceptive rings are available in Saudi Arabia. If you do know, please add the information to this page.

Emergency Contraception (Morning After Pill)

Important Notes: Emergency contraception may prevent pregnancy for three days (72 hours) and sometimes five days (120 hours) after unprotected sex. Take EC as soon as possible after unprotected sex. If you don't have access to dedicated EC, oral contraceptives can be used as replacement EC, but remember the following: 1) Only some contraceptives work as EC 2) Different contraceptives require different dosages and time schedules to work as EC 3) You must only use the first 21 pills in 28-day packs and 4) They may be less effective than dedicated EC. For general information on emergency contraceptives, click here and here.

Laws & Social Stigmas

In Saudi Arabia, emergency contraception (the morning after pill) is by prescription only. We're not sure who is allowed to get a prescription or the laws around prescription accessibility. However, birth control pills are available, which can be used as replacement EC. See the section below for details.

What to Get & Where to Get It

• If you can access a prescription for dedicated emergency contraception (the morning after pill), you may find Postinor-2 in Saudi Arabia.
• If you cannot access dedicated emergency contraception, you can use regular oral contraceptives (birth control pills) as replacement ECPs. To do this, you can do any of the following:
  • For any of these pill brands, take 50 pills within 120 hours after unprotected sex: Microlut
  • For any of these pill brands, take 2 pills within 120 hours after unprotected sex and take 2 more pills 12 hours later (note: in 28-day packs, only the first 21 pills can be used): Eugynon, Neogynon, Nordiol, Ovral
  • For any of these pill brands, take 4 pills within 120 hours after unprotected sex and take 4 more pills 12 hours later (note: in 28-day packs, only the first 21 pills can be used): Microgynon-30, Nordette
• You can also get an IUD as a form of emergency contraception. Contact your ob/gyn for details.

Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs/STDs)

Important Notes - Learn about PEP and PrEP: If you think that you've been recently exposed to HIV (i.e. within 72 hours), seek out PEP (Post-Exposure Prophylaxis). It's a month-long treatment to prevent HIV infection after exposure, and it may be available in your city. Take PEP as soon as possible. For more information, click here. If you are at risk of HIV exposure, seek out PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis). It's a daily oral pill that can prevent HIV infection before exposure. To learn more about PrEP, click here.

Menstruation

Note: In addition to pads and tampons, you can also use menstrual cups and menstrual underwear for your period. To learn more about menstrual cups, click here. To learn more about menstrual underwear, click here.

Abortion

Important Note: There are two main types of abortions: medical (also known as the "abortion pill") and surgical (also known as "in-clinic"). For medical abortions, you take a pill to induce abortion. For surgical abortions, a procedure is performed to induce abortion. For general information about medical and surgical abortions, click here.