An up-to-date summary of key social and demographic statistics about Israel's Arab population, provided by the Myers-JDC-Brookdale Institute, Israel's leading center for applied research on social policy and social services. For more information on this or other critical social policy issues, visit MJB at brookdale.jdc.org.il and www.facebook.com/MJBInstitute.

1. 1
The Arab Population in Israel: Facts & Figures
December 2015
Facts and Figures provides basic data on Israel’s Arab population with regard to demography,
education, employment, socio-economic status, and health, including comparisons between
the Arab and Jewish populations.
Source citations are listed at the conclusion of this document.
DEMOGRAPHY
Total Population
In 2014, Israel had 1.72 million Arab citizens, representing 21% of the country’s total population. (1)
Religious Composition
As of 2014, 83% of Arabs were Muslim (including the Bedouin). Other religious groups included
Christians (9%) and Druze (8%). (2)
Age Structure
In 2013, 44% of all Arabs in Israel were age 18 or younger, as compared with
only 32% of Jewish Israelis. (3)
Fertility Rates
Fertility rates have declined
since 1960 among all Arab
groups, and the gaps between
Arabs and Jews have all but
disappeared—3.2 children
among Arabs and 3.1 children
among Jews in 2013. Of note is
that the fertility rate of both
Christian Arabs and Druze is
now below the rate for Jews. (3)
Family Size
Despite the decline in fertility,
Arab families are still considerably larger, with 10% having five or more
children, compared with only 3% of Jewish households in 2011. (4)
Figure 1: Fertility Rate (average children per female),
by Religious Group, 1960-2013 (3)
3.4
3.3 2.8 2.6
2.7
3.1
9.2
8.5
5.5
4.7 4.6
3.4
4.7
3.7
2.4
2.2 2.4 2.1
7.5
7.3
5.4
3.8
2.9
2.2
1960-1964 1970-1974 1980-1984 1990-1994 2000-2004 2013
Moslems
Druze
Christians
Jews
2013 fertility rate
for all Arabs: 3.2

2. 2
EDUCATION
There have been significant improvements in the educational levels of Arabs, but the gaps
between Arabs and Jews are still large.
Dropping Out of High School
Dropout rates among Arab students continue to be far above the rates of Jewish students. In
2013, by age 17, 14% of Arab students had dropped out of school versus 8% of Jewish students.
This makes them ineligible for most vocational training programs, and reduces their
employment prospects
considerably. (5)
University-bound
In Israel, high school students
take a series of matriculation
exams known as bagruyot.
These exams are the primary
basis for acceptance into
higher education. The exam
scores, therefore, are an
important indicator of the
trend in educational
advancement and subsequent
economic success.
Between 2001 and 2014,
university-eligible matriculation
rates steadily improved among
all Arab 17-year olds, from 25% to
33%. This improvement was evident
in all groups. (6)
These improvements
notwithstanding, university-
eligible matriculation rates
are still well below those of
Jewish students. (6)
Figure 3: Percentage of Arab 17-Year-Olds Receiving High-
School Diploma with University Eligibility, 2001-2014 (6)
46% 45%
47%
50%
29%
31%
36%
27%
32%
35%
44%
13%
17%
20% 20%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
2001/2 2005/6 2009/10 2013/14
Jews*
Druze
Moslems and
Christians
Bedouin
2013/14 rate for
all Arabs: 33%
*Jewish data includes Haredim
2001/2
rate for
all Arabs:
25%
53%
51%
54% 59%
38%
36%
39%
48%
40% 45%
47%
62%
28% 28% 28%
30%
2001/2 2005/6 2009/10 2013/14
2001/2
rate for
all Arabs:
37%
2013/14 rate for
all Arabs: 46%
*Jewish data includes Haredim
Jews*
Druze
Moslems and
Christians
Bedouin
Figure 2: Percentage of Arab 17-Year-Olds Receiving High-
School Diploma with General Matriculation, 2001-2014 (6)

3. 3
Years of Education
Arab education levels have improved dramatically since 2000, with Arab women making the
most rapid educational progress. In 2014, 30% of Arab women ages 25-34 had 16+ years of
education, compared with only 10% in 2000. In fact, the rates Arab women have now surpassed
those for Arab men—30% compared with 21%. (7)
Despite these improvements, significant gaps persist between Arabs and Jews at both the lower
and higher education levels.
Figure 4: Percentage with 16+ Years of Education,
Arab and Jewish Women and Men, Ages 25-34, 2000 and 2014 (7)
Jews
2014
2000
2014
2000
2014
2000
2014
2000
Arabs
Jews
Arabs
30%
10%
43%
29%
21%
15%
38%
25%
2014
2000
2014
2000
2014
2000
2014
2000
ArabwomenJewishwomenArabmenJewishmen
Men
Women

4. 4
EMPLOYMENT
Arab Women
The most significant employment gap is
between Arab and Jewish women.
 Even though employment rates for Arab
women have increased since 1997, only 33%
of Arab women of working age were
employed in 2014, compared with 71%
among Jewish women. (8)
 In 2011, 27% of working-age Arab women
worked part time, and the majority preferred
to find full-time employment. (7)
 Education matters. In 2011, 74% of women
with 13+ years of education were employed
or studying, compared with only 7% of
women with less than 8 years of education. (7)
 There is significant untapped potential.
Of particular note is that in 2011 over
half of Arab women ages 18 to 24 were
neither working nor studying. 82% of
these women had completed high
school and only 29% had children. (7)
In general, young Arab women have
unique, additional challenges that impede
on their integration into the workforce.
 Language. A significant percentage of
young Arab women do not speak or
write well in Hebrew—even among
those who have completed high school.
Most Arabs study in schools in which
Arabic is the primary language, with
Hebrew studied as a second language.
 Technical skills. Arab women have more limited backgrounds in computers, compared with
their Jewish counterparts.
 Vocational training. A 2011 study from MJB revealed that very few young Arab women
have participated in any kind of vocational training program. (9)
19% 20%
25%
33%
56%
59%
64%
71%
0%
20%
40%
60%
1997 2003 2009 2014
Figure 5: Employment among Arab Women and
All Jewish Women, Ages 25-64, 2014 (8)
Arab Women
Jewish Women
Figure 6: Percent of Arab Women Studying or
Working, by Years of Education, Ages 18-64, 2011 (7)
7%
14%
25%
74%
0-8 years 9-11 years 12 years 13+ years
Years of education

5. 5
Arab Men
The economic recession in the early 2000s
hit Arab men harder than other segments of
Israeli society, and their employment levels
have not fully recovered.
Still, the employment gap is not large. In
2014, 75% of Arab men ages 25-64 worked,
compared with 81% of the broader
population of Israeli men. (8)
Differences in employment rates are due to
the dramatic drop in employment rates
among Arab men over age 45. (7)
SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS
The gaps in education, employment, wages, and family size have led to major gaps in economic
status between Arabs and Jews.
 In 2013, 47% of Arab families lived in poverty (after taxes and transfer payments), compared
with 14% of Jewish families. (10, 11)
Table 1: Poverty among Families and Children, 2013 (10, 11)
Arab Families Jewish Families Arab Children Jewish Children
47%
164,900
14%
269,600
66%
382,600
20%
374,400
 Arab families constitute 38% of all poor families, far above their proportion of all Israeli
families (15%). (10, 11)
Figure 7: Employment among Arab Men and
All Jewish Men Ages 25-64, 2014 (8)
75%
66%
71%
75%
77%
73%
76%
81%
50%
60%
70%
80%
1997 2003 2009 2014
Jewish
Men
Arab
Men

6. 6
HEALTH
Life Expectancy
Life expectancy has increased
considerably among Arab men
and women since 2000. In 2013,
life expectancy for Arab men
had risen to 78.0 years, and to
80.9 years for women. (12)
Infant Mortality
Infant mortality rate among the Arab population have declined drastically over the years,
though the 2010-12 rate of 6.6 per thousand for non-Jews is still more than double the rate
among Jews (2.7 per thousand). (12)
Disability
Disability rates among adult and
elderly Arabs are significantly
higher than the rate among Jewish
Israelis, especially the rates of
those severely disabled.
Figure 9: Disability Rates for Arabs and Jews (2013) (13)
15% 12%
31% 31%
13%
6%
38%
22%
Arabs Jews Arabs Jews
20-64 65+
Moderate
Severe
15% 12%
31% 31%
13%
6%
38%
22%
Arabs Jews Arabs Jews
20-64 65+
Moderate
Severe
15% 12%
31% 31%
13%
6%
38%
22%
Arabs Jews Arabs Jews
20-64 65+
Moderate
Severe
Figure 8: Life Expectancy in Years for
Arab and Jewish Men and Women, 2000-2013 (12)
74.6
77.3
77.9
81.2
78.0
81.0 80.9
84.3
Arab men Jewish men Arab women Jewish women
2000 2013

7. 7
Health Behaviors
Gaps in health behaviors contribute significantly to differences in health status between Arab
and Jewish Israelis. (Data is from 2010, except where noted.)
46% of Arab men ages 20 and older are smokers, compared with only 28% of Jewish
men. Among women, the differences are reversed—only 9% of Arab women smoke,
compared with 19% of Jewish women. High exposure to second-hand smoke is
greater in the Arab population compared to the Jewish population—48% compared
with 35%. (14)
Physical activity is much less prevalent among Arabs than it is among Jews. Only
48% of Arabs ages 20 and older report exercising, compared with 70% of Jews. (14)
69% of Arab women ages 50-74 reported having a mammogram test within the
previous two years, compared with 76% of Jewish women. (14)
Only 16% of Arabs reported receiving a flu shot, compared with 25% of Jews. Among
those 65 and older, the gaps are even greater—42% compared with 59%. (14)
Arabs experiencing mental distress are less likely to turn to professionals for help
than are Jews—21% compared with 39%, in 2013. (15)

8. 8
Sources
1. Israel Monthly Statistical Abstract, March 2015.
2. Statistical Abstract of Israel, Central Bureau of Statistics, 2014.
3. Statistical Abstract of Israel, Central Bureau of Statistics, 2013.
4. Central Bureau of Statistics Labor Force survey, 2011.
5. CBS, Statistical Abstract of Israel, 65, 2014, Table 8.22.
6. MJB special analysis of data from the Ministry of Education, Examinations Division and Data Processing
Administration, "Matriculation Exams Data 2014,” Jerusalem 2015.
7. MJB special analysis of Central Bureau of Statistics data, 2000 and 2014..
8. Central Bureau of Statistics special data extract from Labor Force Survey, 2014.
9. Habib, J., King, J., Ben Shoham, A., Wolde-Tsadick, A., Lasky, K. OECD SOCIAL, EMPLOYMENT AND
MIGRATION WORKING PAPERS NO. 102 Labour Market and Socio-Economic Outcomes of the Arab-Israeli
Population. 2010.
10.National Insurance Institute Annual Report, 2013.
11.MJB special analysis of Central Bureau of Statistics 2013 Family Expenditure Survey.
12.Table 3.32, Statistical Abstract of Israel, Central Bureau of Statistics, 2014.
13.Central Bureau of Statistics, General Social Survey. 2013.
14.Ministry of Health, Strategic and Economic Planning Authority, Addressing Health Inequalities, 2014 (data based
on 2010 General Social Survey from Central Bureau of Statistics).
15.Elroy, I.; Rosen, B., and Elmakias, I. Forthcoming. Mental Health Services in Israel: Needs, Utilization and Barriers
– General Population Survey. Jerusalem: Myers-JDC-Brookdale Institute.
     
Founded in 1974, the Myers-JDC-Brookdale Institute is Israel’s leading center for applied research on social policy
and services, serving Israel, the Jewish world, and the international community. MJB is an independent, non-profit
partnership between the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee, the Government of Israel, and the David
and Inez Myers Foundation of Cleveland. The Institute’s Board of Directors is composed of senior government
officials from the ministries of Social Affairs, Education, Health, and Finance, and Israel’s Social Security
Administration, along with international experts, and major international Jewish lay leaders.
To learn more about MJB, visit www.jdc.org.il/brookdale or www.facebook.com/MJBInstitute.