Armed forces personnel by country
United States: 1.4 million in 2020, 1st of 38 OECD members (highest first). 5th of all 170 with data.
Highest: 
India (3.1 million, 2020) · Lowest: 
Antigua and Barbuda (0, 2020) · 170 countries and territories with data.
Active-duty military and paramilitary personnel. 2020 is the latest year.
Ranking
Latest value for each country (within 5 years).
Over time
United States: rank over time
Rank among the countries with data in each year (highest first).
World ranking (highest first)
| Rank | Country | Value | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | 3.1 million | 2020 |
| 2 |  China | 2.5 million | 2020 |
| 3 |  North Korea | 1.5 million | 2020 |
| 4 |  Russia | 1.5 million | 2020 |
| 5 |  United States | 1.4 million | 2020 |
| 6 |  Pakistan | 943,000 | 2020 |
| 7 |  Egypt | 836,000 | 2020 |
| 8 |  Brazil | 762,000 | 2020 |
| 9 |  Indonesia | 676,000 | 2020 |
| 10 |  Iran | 650,000 | 2020 |
| 11 |  South Korea | 569,000 | 2020 |
| 12 |  Vietnam | 522,000 | 2020 |
| 13 |  Türkiye | 512,000 | 2020 |
| 14 |  Myanmar | 463,000 | 2020 |
| 15 |  Iraq | 459,000 | 2020 |
| 16 |  Thailand | 455,000 | 2020 |
| 17 |  Colombia | 428,000 | 2020 |
| 18 |  Venezuela | 343,000 | 2020 |
| 19 |  Mexico | 341,000 | 2020 |
| 20 |  Italy | 338,000 | 2020 |
| 21 |  Algeria | 326,000 | 2020 |
| 22 |  Sri Lanka | 317,000 | 2020 |
| 23 |  France | 304,000 | 2020 |
| 24 |  Ukraine | 298,000 | 2020 |
| 25 |  Saudi Arabia | 282,000 | 2020 |
| 26 |  Syria | 269,000 | 2020 |
| 27 |  Japan | 261,000 | 2020 |
| 28 |  Morocco | 246,000 | 2020 |
| 29 |  Bangladesh | 227,000 | 2020 |
| 30 |  Nigeria | 223,000 | 2020 |
| 31 |  Eritrea | 202,000 | 2020 |
| 32 |  Spain | 199,000 | 2020 |
| 33 |  Cambodia | 191,000 | 2020 |
| 34 |  Poland | 189,000 | 2020 |
| 35 |  Germany | 183,000 | 2020 |
| 36 |  Israel | 178,000 | 2020 |
| 37 |  Afghanistan | 165,000 | 2020 |
| 38 |  Belarus | 158,000 | 2020 |
| 39 |  Peru | 158,000 | 2020 |
| 40 |  Philippines | 157,000 | 2020 |
| 41 |  United Kingdom | 153,000 | 2020 |
| 42 |  Greece | 147,000 | 2020 |
| 43 |  Sudan | 144,000 | 2020 |
| 44 |  Ethiopia | 138,000 | 2020 |
| 45 |  Malaysia | 136,000 | 2020 |
| 46 |  DR Congo | 134,000 | 2020 |
| 47 |  Laos | 129,000 | 2020 |
| 48 |  Romania | 128,000 | 2020 |
| 49 |  Angola | 117,000 | 2020 |
| 50 |  Jordan | 116,000 | 2020 |
| 51 |  Chile | 114,000 | 2020 |
| 52 |  Nepal | 112,000 | 2020 |
| 53 |  Argentina | 103,000 | 2020 |
| 54 |  South Africa | 89,000 | 2020 |
| 55 |  Azerbaijan | 82,000 | 2020 |
| 56 |  Lebanon | 80,000 | 2020 |
| 57 |  Cuba | 76,000 | 2020 |
| 58 |  Canada | 72,000 | 2020 |
| 59 |  Bolivia | 71,000 | 2020 |
| 60 |  Dominican Republic | 71,000 | 2020 |
| 61 |  Kazakhstan | 71,000 | 2020 |
| 62 |  Uzbekistan | 68,000 | 2020 |
| 63 |  United Arab Emirates | 63,000 | 2020 |
| 64 |  Australia | 60,000 | 2020 |
| 65 |  Singapore | 59,000 | 2020 |
| 66 |  Turkmenistan | 57,000 | 2020 |
| 67 |  South Sudan | 53,000 | 2020 |
| 68 |  Portugal | 52,000 | 2020 |
| 69 |  Zimbabwe | 51,000 | 2020 |
| 70 |  Tunisia | 48,000 | 2020 |
| 71 |  Armenia | 47,000 | 2020 |
| 72 |  Oman | 47,000 | 2020 |
| 73 |  Hungary | 46,000 | 2020 |
| 74 |  Uganda | 46,000 | 2020 |
| 75 |  Chad | 45,000 | 2020 |
| 76 |  Guatemala | 43,000 | 2020 |
| 77 |  Ecuador | 42,000 | 2020 |
| 78 |  El Salvador | 42,000 | 2020 |
| 79 |  Mali | 41,000 | 2020 |
| 80 |  Netherlands | 41,000 | 2020 |
| 81 |  Yemen | 40,000 | 2020 |
| 82 |  Bulgaria | 37,000 | 2020 |
| 83 |  Lithuania | 37,000 | 2020 |
| 84 |  Rwanda | 35,000 | 2020 |
| 85 |  Cameroon | 34,000 | 2020 |
| 86 |  Serbia | 32,000 | 2020 |
| 87 |  Burundi | 31,000 | 2020 |
| 88 |  Paraguay | 29,000 | 2020 |
| 89 |  Panama | 28,000 | 2020 |
| 90 |  Tanzania | 28,000 | 2020 |
| 91 |  Côte d'Ivoire | 27,000 | 2020 |
| 92 |  Czechia | 27,000 | 2020 |
| 93 |  Georgia | 26,000 | 2020 |
| 94 |  Kuwait | 25,000 | 2020 |
| 95 |  Norway | 25,000 | 2020 |
| 96 |  Belgium | 24,000 | 2020 |
| 97 |  Kenya | 24,000 | 2020 |
| 98 |  Austria | 23,000 | 2020 |
| 99 |  Honduras | 23,000 | 2020 |
| 100 |  Finland | 22,000 | 2020 |
| 101 |  Madagascar | 22,000 | 2020 |
| 102 |  Qatar | 22,000 | 2020 |
| 103 |  Uruguay | 22,000 | 2020 |
| 104 |  Kyrgyzstan | 21,000 | 2020 |
| 105 |  Mauritania | 21,000 | 2020 |
| 106 |  Switzerland | 20,000 | 2020 |
| 107 |  Croatia | 20,000 | 2020 |
| 108 |  Bahrain | 19,000 | 2020 |
| 109 |  Senegal | 19,000 | 2020 |
| 110 |  Mongolia | 18,000 | 2020 |
| 111 |  Slovakia | 18,000 | 2020 |
| 112 |  Tajikistan | 17,000 | 2020 |
| 113 |  Ghana | 16,000 | 2020 |
| 114 |  North Macedonia | 16,000 | 2020 |
| 115 |  Namibia | 16,000 | 2020 |
| 116 |  Zambia | 16,000 | 2020 |
| 117 |  Denmark | 15,000 | 2020 |
| 118 |  Malawi | 15,000 | 2020 |
| 119 |  Sweden | 15,000 | 2020 |
| 120 |  Somalia | 14,000 | 2020 |
| 121 |  Cyprus | 13,000 | 2020 |
| 122 |  Djibouti | 13,000 | 2020 |
| 123 |  Guinea | 13,000 | 2020 |
| 124 |  Benin | 12,000 | 2020 |
| 125 |  Republic of the Congo | 12,000 | 2020 |
| 126 |  Montenegro | 12,000 | 2020 |
| 127 |  Nicaragua | 12,000 | 2020 |
| 128 |  Burkina Faso | 11,000 | 2020 |
| 129 |  Bosnia and Herzegovina | 11,000 | 2020 |
| 130 |  Mozambique | 11,000 | 2020 |
| 131 |  Central African Republic | 10,000 | 2020 |
| 132 |  Costa Rica | 10,000 | 2020 |
| 133 |  Niger | 10,000 | 2020 |
| 134 |  New Zealand | 10,000 | 2020 |
| 135 |  Togo | 10,000 | 2020 |
| 136 |  Botswana | 9,000 | 2020 |
| 137 |  Ireland | 9,000 | 2020 |
| 138 |  Latvia | 9,000 | 2020 |
| 139 |  Sierra Leone | 9,000 | 2020 |
| 140 |  Albania | 8,000 | 2020 |
| 141 |  Brunei | 8,000 | 2020 |
| 142 |  Estonia | 7,000 | 2020 |
| 143 |  Gabon | 7,000 | 2020 |
| 144 |  Slovenia | 7,000 | 2020 |
| 145 |  Jamaica | 6,000 | 2020 |
| 146 |  Moldova | 6,000 | 2020 |
| 147 |  Trinidad and Tobago | 5,000 | 2020 |
| 148 |  Fiji | 4,000 | 2020 |
| 149 |  Gambia | 4,000 | 2020 |
| 150 |  Guinea-Bissau | 4,000 | 2020 |
| 151 |  Papua New Guinea | 4,000 | 2020 |
| 152 |  Guyana | 3,000 | 2020 |
| 153 |  Mauritius | 3,000 | 2020 |
| 154 |  Bahamas | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 155 |  Belize | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 156 |  Liberia | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 157 |  Lesotho | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 158 |  Malta | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 159 |  Suriname | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 160 |  Timor-Leste | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 161 |  Barbados | 1,000 | 2020 |
| 162 |  Cabo Verde | 1,000 | 2020 |
| 163 |  Equatorial Guinea | 1,000 | 2020 |
| 164 |  Haiti | 1,000 | 2020 |
| 165 |  Luxembourg | 1,000 | 2020 |
| 166 | Antigua and Barbuda | 0 | 2020 |
| 167 |  Iceland | 0 | 2020 |
| 168 |  Libya | 0 | 2020 |
| 169 |  West Bank and Gaza | 0 | 2020 |
| 170 |  Seychelles | 0 | 2020 |
Source: World Bank, World Development Indicators (MS.MIL.TOTL.P1). License: CC BY 4.0. Data retrieved: 2026-11-02.
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