They drive the latest cars, buy the trendiest clothes and have access to the Internet and Western television.
But age-old tribal traditions and an austere branch of Islam upheld by a powerful conservative clergy dictate the lives of most Saudis, despite halting efforts by the kingdom's government to implement social and political reforms.
"It is a fact that material development in humans is much faster than cultural or social development," said Ibrahim al-Juweir, sociology professor at the Imam University.
"We can build roads, have the fastest trains and import the latest machines and technology but people take a much longer time to cope with these modern conveniences," he added.
Saudi Arabia is the world's biggest oil exporter and its legendary wealth has attracted thousands of expatriate workers and allowed many Saudis to travel and study abroad.
Other countries in the oil-rich Gulf have taken up some foreign customs, but Saudi Arabia is sticking to its own mix of religion and tradition.
"We are a society of contradictions and contrast," said a Saudi businessman, who like many others declined to be named. "We're in the 21st century yet you'd never guess looking at us."
This contrast is evident in the capital Riyadh, a city of multilane highways, gleaming shopping malls and high-rise buildings that is home to three million people.
The kingdom's other major city, Jeddah, is more liberal compared to the capital which is the seat of the ruling Saud family, whose legitimacy stems from their implementation of Islamic sharia law and custodianship of Islam's holiest sites.
CLOSED FOR PRAYER
Five times a day, life in Riyadh comes to a halt for Muslim prayers. Banks and government offices shut. Shops hang up "Closed for Prayer" signs. In some traditional markets, members of the notorious religious police -- the Authority for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice -- round up the men to ensure they go to the mosque.
Islam also urges women to hide their bodies and wear the hijab or headscarf and frowns on males and females who are not related from mixing.
Nowhere are the demands more strictly adhered to than in Saudi Arabia, which applies even tougher curbs, mainly on women.
Restaurants are segregated as are state schools and offices. Many Saudi men avoid getting into an elevator with a woman to avoid being alone with a female, even for a few minutes.
All of Europe's biggest fashion designers and trendy high-street brands have huge stores in the kingdom, but their goods are hidden beneath the headscarves and long, black cloaks or abayas which the women wear.
Most Saudi women opt to cover their faces, often with a translucent veil that hides even their eyes. And to ensure everyone complies, the religious police stand guard at public places administering harsh words for offenders.
INCOGNITO
Showing one's face is such a taboo in many parts of Saudi Arabia that women often punch out the photograph on their identity cards to avoid male civil servants from seeing it.
Sultan, a Saudi television reporter, said he has a hard time getting ordinary women on camera, even in their abayas.
"I tell them to stand with their back to the camera but they still refuse, saying their families will recognize their voices and they'll get into trouble," he said.
Women are forbidden to drive in Saudi Arabia for the same reason -- Islamic clerics justify the ban by saying that in an accident, a woman would have to show her face to the traffic police.
"The only way I can identify my wife when she is standing in with a group of other women is by her shoes," said a government employee. "I'm in trouble if she's bought a new pair."
Proponents of women's rights say Islam does not prohibit women from driving or working, but female professionals are not highly regarded by many Saudis despite the significant number of businesswomen and academics in the kingdom.
"Nobody wants a nurse because she's had to deal with so many people," said Saudi employee Fahd. "Teachers are okay."
Most foreign residents in Saudi Arabia live in housing compounds that are under heavy guard since suicide bombings by al Qaeda-linked militants killed at least 50 people in 2003.
After the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the United States -- which were carried out mainly by Saudis loyal to Osama bin Laden -- some U.S. officials said that Saudi Arabia's religion-infused way of life promoted militancy.
The kingdom has responded by launching educational and political reforms. But progress is slow and Saudi schools still inculcate in their students the kingdom's strict social laws.
Education officials have drafted a "code" that involves punishing students who do not wear their abaya "properly." Local newspapers said supervisors are also required to monitor the students' behavior and even their conversations.
"One can imagine that the next step is to give each girl an electronic chip to be worn on the wrist," wrote columnist Abeer Mishkhas in the Arab News daily. "If half the population is treated with such suspicion, how can we expect women to be...productive and vital in society."