Data / Rankings / Military expenditure / Countries

Countries by military spending as a share of GDP

Oman had the highest military spending as a share of GDP of 154 countries in 2016, at 10.6% of GDP. Panama had the lowest, at 0% of GDP. The median was 1.4% of GDP and the figure for the World was 2.2% of GDP. Source: the World Bank.

Highest10.6Oman
Lowest0Panama
Median1.4154 countries
World2.2History

Top 40 countries, 2016

CSVChart (SVG)

OmanOman: 10.6 % of GDP10.6Saudi ArabiaSaudi Arabia: 9.2 % of GDP9.2KuwaitKuwait: 5.9 % of GDP5.9AlgeriaAlgeria: 5.7 % of GDP5.7RussiaRussia: 5.4 % of GDP5.4IsraelIsrael: 5.2 % of GDP5.2LebanonLebanon: 5.1 % of GDP5.1South SudanSouth Sudan: 4.8 % of GDP4.8BahrainBahrain: 4.7 % of GDP4.7Republic of the CongoRepublic of the Congo: 4.6 % of GDP4.6JordanJordan: 4.4 % of GDP4.4ArmeniaArmenia: 4.1 % of GDP4.1NamibiaNamibia: 4 % of GDP4MyanmarMyanmar: 3.8 % of GDP3.8AzerbaijanAzerbaijan: 3.7 % of GDP3.7UkraineUkraine: 3.7 % of GDP3.7IraqIraq: 3.6 % of GDP3.6BruneiBrunei: 3.5 % of GDP3.5BotswanaBotswana: 3.4 % of GDP3.4United StatesUnited States: 3.4 % of GDP3.4KyrgyzstanKyrgyzstan: 3.3 % of GDP3.3PakistanPakistan: 3.2 % of GDP3.2SingaporeSingapore: 3.1 % of GDP3.1CubaCuba: 3.1 % of GDP3.1ColombiaColombia: 3.1 % of GDP3.1MoroccoMorocco: 3 % of GDP3IranIran: 2.8 % of GDP2.8AngolaAngola: 2.7 % of GDP2.7MaliMali: 2.6 % of GDP2.6EcuadorEcuador: 2.6 % of GDP2.6GreeceGreece: 2.6 % of GDP2.6IndiaIndia: 2.5 % of GDP2.5VietnamVietnam: 2.5 % of GDP2.5South KoreaSouth Korea: 2.3 % of GDP2.3ChadChad: 2.3 % of GDP2.3SudanSudan: 2.3 % of GDP2.3BurundiBurundi: 2.2 % of GDP2.2TunisiaTunisia: 2.2 % of GDP2.2MauritaniaMauritania: 2.1 % of GDP2.1AustraliaAustralia: 2.1 % of GDP2.1
% of GDP. Source: World Bank. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

Full ranking

RankCountries2016
% of GDP		Change on 2015
1Oman10.6+1 pts
2Saudi Arabia9.2-3.3 pts
3Kuwait5.9+0.9 pts
4Algeria5.7+0.1 pts
5Russia5.4+0.6 pts
6Israel5.2-0.1 pts
7Lebanon5.1+0.6 pts
8South Sudan4.8-3.8 pts
9Bahrain4.70 pts
10Republic of the Congo4.6n/a
11Jordan4.4+0.3 pts
12Armenia4.1-0.1 pts
13Namibia4-0.6 pts
14Myanmar3.8-0.3 pts
15Azerbaijan3.7-1.8 pts
16Ukraine3.7-0.2 pts
17Iraq3.6-1.9 pts
18Brunei3.5+0.3 pts
19Botswana3.4+0.6 pts
20United States3.4-0.1 pts
21Kyrgyzstan3.3-0.1 pts
22Pakistan3.20 pts
23Singapore3.10 pts
24Cuba3.1-0 pts
25Colombia3.1-0 pts
26Morocco30 pts
27Iran2.8+0.2 pts
28Angola2.7-0.4 pts
29Mali2.6+0.2 pts
30Ecuador2.6-0.1 pts
31Greece2.6+0.1 pts
32India2.5+0.1 pts
33Vietnam2.5-0.1 pts
34South Korea2.3-0 pts
35Chad2.3+0.8 pts
36Sudan2.3-0.4 pts
37Burundi2.2+0.1 pts
38Tunisia2.2+0.1 pts
39Mauritania2.1-0 pts
40Australia2.1+0.1 pts
41Eswatini2.1+0.3 pts
42Türkiye2+0.2 pts
43Georgia2+0.1 pts
44Estonia20 pts
45Sri Lanka2-0.4 pts
46United Kingdom2-0.1 pts
47Lesotho2+0.1 pts
48Poland1.9-0.2 pts
49Chile1.90 pts
50Guinea1.9-0.6 pts
51Serbia1.9+0.2 pts
52France1.9-0 pts
53Belarus1.80 pts
54Zimbabwe1.7-0.1 pts
55China1.7-0 pts
56Uruguay1.7-0 pts
57Egypt1.7-0.1 pts
58Norway1.6+0.1 pts
59Senegal1.6+0.4 pts
60Niger1.6n/a
61Timor-Leste1.6-0.7 pts
62Croatia1.6-0.2 pts
63Portugal1.6-0 pts
64Honduras1.5+0.2 pts
65Bolivia1.5-0.2 pts
66Latvia1.5+0.4 pts
67Lithuania1.5+0.3 pts
68Central African Republic1.5-0.1 pts
69Nepal1.5+0.1 pts
70Gabon1.4+0.3 pts
71Cambodia1.4+0.1 pts
72Finland1.4-0 pts
73Zambia1.4-0.3 pts
74Romania1.4-0 pts
75Montenegro1.4-0 pts
76Cyprus1.4-0.2 pts
77Seychelles1.4+0.1 pts
78Malaysia1.4-0.1 pts
79Togo1.4-0.3 pts
80Brazil1.3-0 pts
81Thailand1.3-0 pts
82Peru1.3-0.4 pts
83Italy1.3+0.1 pts
84Guinea-Bissau1.3-0.2 pts
85Kenya1.20 pts
86Côte d’Ivoire1.20 pts
87Bulgaria1.2-0 pts
88Rwanda1.20 pts
89Equatorial Guinea1.2+0.2 pts
90Bangladesh1.2-0.2 pts
91Tajikistan1.2-0.1 pts
92Burkina Faso1.2-0.1 pts
93Guyana1.2+0.1 pts
94Denmark1.20 pts
95Cameroon1.10 pts
96Netherlands1.10 pts
97Canada1.1-0 pts
98Germany1.10 pts
99Spain1.1-0.1 pts
100Slovakia1.10 pts
101Fiji1.1+0.2 pts
102Tanzania1.10 pts
103Albania1.1-0.1 pts
104Sweden1.1-0 pts
105Philippines1-0 pts
106New Zealand10 pts
107Democratic Republic of the Congo1-0.2 pts
108El Salvador1-0 pts
109Belize1+0.1 pts
110Slovenia1+0.1 pts
111Uganda10 pts
112Hungary1+0.1 pts
113Czechia10 pts
114South Africa1-0 pts
115Afghanistan1-0 pts
116Jamaica1+0.1 pts
117Paraguay1-0.1 pts
118North Macedonia0.9-0 pts
119Kazakhstan0.9-0.2 pts
120Bosnia and Herzegovina0.9-0.1 pts
121Mozambique0.9+0.1 pts
122Trinidad and Tobago0.9+0.2 pts
123Japan0.9-0 pts
124Belgium0.9-0 pts
125Mongolia0.9-0 pts
126Argentina0.8-0 pts
127Indonesia0.8-0.1 pts
128Austria0.70 pts
129Sierra Leone0.7+0.1 pts
130Ethiopia0.70 pts
131Benin0.7-0.1 pts
132Switzerland0.70 pts
133Somalia0.6-0 pts
134Nicaragua0.6-0.1 pts
135Dominican Republic0.6-0 pts
136Cape Verde0.60 pts
137Madagascar0.5-0 pts
138Malta0.50 pts
139Mexico0.50 pts
140Venezuela0.5-0.5 pts
141Malawi0.50 pts
142Liberia0.5-0 pts
143Guatemala0.40 pts
144Nigeria0.40 pts
145Papua New Guinea0.4-0.1 pts
146Moldova0.30 pts
147Ireland0.3-0 pts
148Ghana0.3-0.1 pts
149Luxembourg0.30 pts
150Mauritius0.20 pts
151Haiti00 pts
152Costa Rica00 pts
152Iceland00 pts
152Panama00 pts

Other periods

About this ranking

Military expenditure as a percentage of GDP: current and capital spending on the armed forces, including peacekeeping forces, defence ministries, paramilitary forces trained for military operations and military space activities. World Bank series from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

SIPRI definition, so values can differ from the NATO defence expenditure figures used for the 2% target.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the countries are compared on one definition. 11 countries with data in other periods have no value for 2016 and are left out rather than filled from another source. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

World Bank, World Development Indicators. Military expenditure, % of GDP (MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS). https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

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Questions

Which country has the highest military spending as a share of GDP?

Oman, with 10.6% of GDP in 2016, according to the World Bank.

Which country has the lowest military spending as a share of GDP?

Panama, with 0% of GDP in 2016.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: World Bank, Military expenditure, % of GDP (MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS). Retrieved 2026-10-09. 11 countries have no value for 2016 and are not ranked.

Military expenditure: other rankings

Countries: more rankings