Al-Hayat is one of the leading daily pan-Arab newspapers, with a circulation of almost 300,000. It is the newspaper of record for the Arab diasporas and the preferred tribune for left-wing or liberal intellectuals who wish to express themselves to a large public.

Though rather pro-West and pro-Saudi with respect to articles concerning the Arabian peninsula, it is quite open to various opinions concerning other regional questions.

Al-Hayat is printed in London, New York, Beirut, and Riyadh. It has offices in Baghdad, Beirut, Damascus, Jerusalem, Cairo, Khartoum, Istanbul, Algeria, Paris, Vienna, London, New York, and Washington.