Armed Forces Personnel by Country
As of 2020, India leads globally in armed forces personnel at 3.1M, followed by China, North Korea, Russia. At the lower end, Seychelles, Antigua and Barbuda, Iceland rank among the lowest. The global median is 32,000 (Serbia). This indicator falls under the "Military" category and is sourced from the World Bank World Development Indicators. Data is available for 170 countries.
All Countries Ranked
Download every country's latest figure, free, with its year, source, licence and unit on each row: CSV
| # | Country | Armed Forces Personnel | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  India | 3.1M | 2020 |
| 2 |  China | 2.5M | 2020 |
| 3 |  North Korea | 1.5M | 2020 |
| 4 |  Russia | 1.5M | 2020 |
| 5 |  United States | 1.4M | 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 |  Peru | 158,000 | 2020 |
| 39 |  Belarus | 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 |  Dominican Republic | 71,000 | 2020 |
| 60 |  Bolivia | 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 |  Uganda | 46,000 | 2020 |
| 74 |  Hungary | 46,000 | 2020 |
| 75 |  Chad | 45,000 | 2020 |
| 76 |  Guatemala | 43,000 | 2020 |
| 77 |  El Salvador | 42,000 | 2020 |
| 78 |  Ecuador | 42,000 | 2020 |
| 79 |  Netherlands | 41,000 | 2020 |
| 80 |  Mali | 41,000 | 2020 |
| 81 |  Yemen | 40,000 | 2020 |
| 82 |  Lithuania | 37,000 | 2020 |
| 83 |  Bulgaria | 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 |  Tanzania | 28,000 | 2020 |
| 90 |  Panama | 28,000 | 2020 |
| 91 |  Czechia | 27,000 | 2020 |
| 92 |  Côte d'Ivoire | 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 |  Uruguay | 22,000 | 2020 |
| 103 |  Qatar | 22,000 | 2020 |
| 104 |  Kyrgyzstan | 21,000 | 2020 |
| 105 |  Mauritania | 21,000 | 2020 |
| 106 |  Switzerland | 20,000 | 2020 |
| 107 |  Croatia | 20,000 | 2020 |
| 108 |  Senegal | 19,000 | 2020 |
| 109 |  Bahrain | 19,000 | 2020 |
| 110 |  Slovakia | 18,000 | 2020 |
| 111 |  Mongolia | 18,000 | 2020 |
| 112 |  Tajikistan | 17,000 | 2020 |
| 113 |  Zambia | 16,000 | 2020 |
| 114 |  Namibia | 16,000 | 2020 |
| 115 |  Ghana | 16,000 | 2020 |
| 116 |  North Macedonia | 16,000 | 2020 |
| 117 |  Sweden | 15,000 | 2020 |
| 118 |  Malawi | 15,000 | 2020 |
| 119 |  Denmark | 15,000 | 2020 |
| 120 |  Somalia | 14,000 | 2020 |
| 121 |  Cyprus | 13,000 | 2020 |
| 122 |  Guinea | 13,000 | 2020 |
| 123 |  Djibouti | 13,000 | 2020 |
| 124 |  Republic of the Congo | 12,000 | 2020 |
| 125 |  Benin | 12,000 | 2020 |
| 126 |  Nicaragua | 12,000 | 2020 |
| 127 |  Montenegro | 12,000 | 2020 |
| 128 |  Mozambique | 11,000 | 2020 |
| 129 |  Burkina Faso | 11,000 | 2020 |
| 130 |  Bosnia and Herzegovina | 11,000 | 2020 |
| 131 |  Niger | 10,000 | 2020 |
| 132 |  New Zealand | 10,000 | 2020 |
| 133 |  Costa Rica | 10,000 | 2020 |
| 134 |  Central African Republic | 10,000 | 2020 |
| 135 |  Togo | 10,000 | 2020 |
| 136 |  Botswana | 9,000 | 2020 |
| 137 |  Sierra Leone | 9,000 | 2020 |
| 138 |  Ireland | 9,000 | 2020 |
| 139 |  Latvia | 9,000 | 2020 |
| 140 |  Albania | 8,000 | 2020 |
| 141 |  Brunei | 8,000 | 2020 |
| 142 |  Gabon | 7,000 | 2020 |
| 143 |  Slovenia | 7,000 | 2020 |
| 144 |  Estonia | 7,000 | 2020 |
| 145 |  Moldova | 6,000 | 2020 |
| 146 |  Jamaica | 6,000 | 2020 |
| 147 |  Trinidad and Tobago | 5,000 | 2020 |
| 148 |  The Gambia | 4,000 | 2020 |
| 149 |  Guinea-Bissau | 4,000 | 2020 |
| 150 |  Fiji | 4,000 | 2020 |
| 151 |  Papua New Guinea | 4,000 | 2020 |
| 152 |  Mauritius | 3,000 | 2020 |
| 153 |  Guyana | 3,000 | 2020 |
| 154 |  Malta | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 155 |  Belize | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 156 |  Lesotho | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 157 |  Liberia | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 158 |  Bahamas | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 159 |  Suriname | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 160 |  Timor-Leste | 2,000 | 2020 |
| 161 |  Barbados | 1,000 | 2020 |
| 162 |  Luxembourg | 1,000 | 2020 |
| 163 |  Haiti | 1,000 | 2020 |
| 164 |  Equatorial Guinea | 1,000 | 2020 |
| 165 |  Cabo Verde | 1,000 | 2020 |
| 166 |  West Bank and Gaza | 0 | 2020 |
| 167 |  Libya | 0 | 2020 |
| 168 |  Iceland | 0 | 2020 |
| 169 |  Antigua and Barbuda | 0 | 2020 |
| 170 |  Seychelles | 0 | 2020 |
Frequently Asked Questions
Which country has the highest armed forces personnel in 2020?
India ranks #1 with armed forces personnel of 3.1M as of 2020, based on data from the World Bank World Development Indicators.
Which country has the lowest armed forces personnel?
Seychelles ranks last (#170) with 0 as of 2020.
What is the global median for armed forces personnel?
The median value is 32,000 (Serbia, ranked #86 out of 170 countries).
How many countries report data for armed forces personnel?
170 countries have available data for armed forces personnel. Data is sourced from the World Bank World Development Indicators and updated regularly.
What category does armed forces personnel belong to?
Armed Forces Personnel is classified under the "Military" category. Statistics of the World tracks 337 indicators across 27 categories.