Al Rimal district is a residential neighbourhood in east Riyadh. Dammam Road forms its southern edge and Janadriyah Road its eastern edge, with Al Munsiyah to the west. Neighbourhood guides place it under the Al Rawdah sub-municipality and roughly 15 to 25 minutes by car from King Khalid International Airport. Most of what's for sale or rent here is apartments, residential floors, villas and plots, generally priced below north Riyadh.
One thing most guides to Al Rimal district don't tell you: the price figures they publish disagree with each other by close to three times. This guide explains why, and what you can actually check before you commit to anything.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Location | East Riyadh |
| Sub-municipality | Al Rawdah (per published neighbourhood guides) |
| Southern edge | Dammam Road |
| Eastern edge | Janadriyah Road |
| Northern edge | Mohammed bin Faraj Street |
| To the west | Al Munsiyah district |
| Neighbouring districts | Al Munsiyah, Granada, Al Qadisiyah, Al Sharq |
| Metro | No station inside the district on the operating network |
| Property types | Apartments, residential floors, villas, residential and commercial land |
| Character | Family residential core, with an industrial and car-services strip on its edges |
The district sits in Riyadh's eastern sector, just north of Dammam Road and west of Janadriyah Road. That puts it on the main route out of the city towards the Eastern Province, and a relatively short drive from the airport.
Published sources agree on two edges: Dammam Road to the south and Janadriyah Road to the east. Mohammed bin Faraj Street is usually given as the northern edge.
The western edge is described in different ways. Some guides name Al Munsiyah district, others name Al Najah Street and Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmad Al Sabah Street. In practice, Al Munsiyah is to the west. But if you're looking at a plot or unit near that edge, the district named on the title deed is what counts, not the one in the listing.
You'll see "Al Rimal Al Dhahabi" (Golden Sands) in some listings. In the guides we reviewed, it's a trade name for a newer part of Al Rimal with larger units, not a separate district. Again, check the deed.
Neighbourhood guides estimate about 15 minutes to King Khalid International Airport, and one puts it at 15 to 25 minutes (15 to 20 km). Olaya is quoted at 25 to 40 minutes depending on traffic. These are published estimates, not measured times. Dammam Road at 6 pm is a very different drive from Dammam Road at 11 am.
No. There's no station inside the district on the operating Riyadh Metro network. The nearest line in the east is Line 3 (Orange), whose eastern terminus is Khashm Al-An, running along Prince Saad bin Abdulrahman Al-Awal Road, according to the Wikipedia page on Riyadh Metro Line 3. In the district, you'll be driving.
One major listings guide counts more than 11 boys' and girls' schools, including Manarat Al Ofoq Private Schools, the Applied University schools, Al Rimal Girls' Intermediate and Girls' Secondary School 171, plus several nurseries. Another guide lists far fewer. If schooling is a deciding factor, check the schools near the specific street rather than the district as a whole.
Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University is roughly 12 minutes away and Imam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University about 14 minutes, by the same guides' estimates.
Inside the district there's a primary health centre, private medical complexes and pharmacies. The larger hospitals are outside it, including Aster Sanad, Family Care Hospital and Prince Mohammed bin Abdulaziz Hospital, about 20 minutes away.
The district has a traffic department office and a passports branch. It also has the Al Rimal industrial area and a car auction yard, which matters more than it sounds when you're choosing a street, as the next section explains.
Strengths:
Trade-offs:
| Type | Suits | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Apartments | Small families, newlyweds, rental investors | The most common listing type |
| Residential floors | Families wanting more space than an apartment for less than a villa | Usually a private entrance, but shared land and roof |
| Villas | Larger families | Wide variation in age, size and finish |
| Residential plots | Buyers who want to build | Check building regulations and street width |
| Commercial plots | Investors | Mostly on main streets |
Residential floors (known locally as dor) are among the most common offerings here, and many buyers treat them like a small villa. Legally, they're not.
When you buy a floor in a shared building, you own a subdivided unit you can use and sell independently, and you share the common areas (land, roof, stairwell, entrance) with the other owners. Article 26 of the Law of Ownership, Subdivision and Management of Real Estate Units requires each owner to pay for maintaining and managing those common areas in proportion to their unit's area relative to the total.
In practice:
A worked example. A three-floor building has units of 220, 200 and 180 sqm, 600 sqm in total. The first-floor owner pays 220 ÷ 600 = 36.7% of common-area costs, the third-floor owner 180 ÷ 600 = 30%. If re-waterproofing the roof costs SAR 15,000, the first-floor share is about SAR 5,500 and the third-floor share SAR 4,500.
Search for Al Rimal district prices and you'll find figures that contradict each other badly. Here's what four well-known property guides publish:
| Indicator | Source A | Source B | Source C |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average residential land price per sqm | ~SAR 1,337 (Bayut English guide, undated) | ~SAR 1,363 (Sakan blog, 2024) | ~SAR 3,775 (Aqar blog, H2 2024) |
| Average villa price | ~SAR 572,000 (Bayut English guide) | ~SAR 945,000 (Bayut Arabic guide) | ~SAR 2.09 million (Aqar blog) |
The highest land figure is 2.8 times the lowest. For villas the gap is 3.7 times. One guide even shows the average villa costing less than the average apartment, which makes no sense within a single district.
Aqar's blog, citing Ministry of Justice data, reports that between 1 January and 26 April 2025 the district recorded 91 transactions worth a total of SAR 229,913,156 over 52,513 sqm, 97.8% of them residential.
Divide value by area and count:
That's not a land price. The recorded area is usually the plot, while the value includes any building on it. So the per-sqm figure lands above every published land price, and a single large deal can pull the per-transaction average up sharply.
The practical rule: don't judge a property against the district average. Compare it with actual recent transactions of the same type, similar size and the same period. These are available through the Ministry of Justice's live real estate transactions service.
| Your situation | Fit | Why |
|---|---|---|
| You work in east Riyadh or near the airport | Strong | Short daily commute |
| You work or study at Princess Nourah University | Good | About 12 minutes by published estimates |
| You travel frequently | Good | Airport and Dammam Road access |
| You work in Olaya or KAFD | Do the maths | 25 to 40 minutes each way |
| You rely on the metro | Poor for now | No station in the district |
| A family wanting quiet | Good, with care | Pick a street away from the industrial area and car auction |
| A rental investor | Worth studying | Demand from young families and east-side workers, but verify actual rents |
A simple test before deciding: drive from the property to your workplace at 7 am on a normal working day, then back at 5 pm. If both trips are acceptable, the location works for you.
If you're not a Saudi national, check your eligibility first. The Cityscape Global page on foreign ownership notes that the updated law on real estate ownership by non-Saudis took effect on 22 January 2026, and the Real Estate General Authority sets the eligible zones and conditions. For the general steps of choosing a home in the city, see our guide to buying a property in Riyadh.
Diyar Roaa lists two projects in the district:
Prices aren't published on the site. For details or a viewing, you can contact the Diyar Roaa team, and ask for the unit deed and owners' association details as described above.
In east Riyadh, north of Dammam Road and west of Janadriyah Road, next to Al Munsiyah, Granada and Al Qadisiyah.
Al Rawdah sub-municipality, according to published neighbourhood guides.
Published guides estimate 15 to 25 minutes by car, about 15 to 20 km, depending on where in the district you start and on traffic.
No. There's no station inside the district on the operating network. The nearest line in the east is Line 3 (Orange), which ends at Khashm Al-An.
It's a mid-range family area with a planned layout and wide streets. How quiet it is depends on the street: parts near the industrial area and car auction are busier.
A trade name for a newer part of the district, not a separate district in the guides we reviewed. The district on the title deed is the reference.
Published land figures range from about SAR 1,337 to SAR 3,775 per sqm depending on the source and period. Compare actual recent transactions of the same type instead of relying on one average.
It can suit buyers who want more space than an apartment, provided the floor has its own unit deed and you know your share of common-area costs, which is calculated by your unit's share of the total area.
Al Rimal district makes sense if you work in east Riyadh, need quick airport access or study and work near Princess Nourah University. It offers everything from apartments to villas and plots. Two things deserve caution: published price averages for the district are too inconsistent to judge any single offer, and the street you choose inside the district makes a real difference to how quiet it is.
If you're considering a purchase, you can browse Diyar Roaa's property listings and weigh them against what you've read here before you book a viewing.
Information about the district is drawn from the neighbourhood guides and sources cited, current as of 25 October 2026. Boundaries, services and prices can change, so verify before you decide. This content is educational and isn't legal or financial advice.
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