Data / Rankings / Military expenditure / Countries

Countries by military spending as a share of GDP

Saudi Arabia had the highest military spending as a share of GDP of 153 countries in 2020, at 8.4% of GDP. Panama had the lowest, at 0% of GDP. The median was 1.5% of GDP and the figure for the World was 2.3% of GDP. Source: the World Bank.

Highest8.4Saudi Arabia
Lowest0Panama
Median1.5153 countries
World2.3History

Top 40 countries, 2020

CSVChart (SVG)

Saudi ArabiaSaudi Arabia: 8.4 % of GDP8.4OmanOman: 8 % of GDP8KuwaitKuwait: 6.3 % of GDP6.3AlgeriaAlgeria: 5.9 % of GDP5.9AzerbaijanAzerbaijan: 5.2 % of GDP5.2IsraelIsrael: 5.1 % of GDP5.1ArmeniaArmenia: 5 % of GDP5JordanJordan: 4.7 % of GDP4.7UkraineUkraine: 4.4 % of GDP4.4RussiaRussia: 4.1 % of GDP4.1BahrainBahrain: 4.1 % of GDP4.1MoroccoMorocco: 4 % of GDP4United StatesUnited States: 3.6 % of GDP3.6BruneiBrunei: 3.6 % of GDP3.6ColombiaColombia: 3.5 % of GDP3.5PakistanPakistan: 3.5 % of GDP3.5NamibiaNamibia: 3.5 % of GDP3.5MaliMali: 3.4 % of GDP3.4BotswanaBotswana: 3.3 % of GDP3.3MyanmarMyanmar: 3.3 % of GDP3.3IraqIraq: 3.1 % of GDP3.1KyrgyzstanKyrgyzstan: 3.1 % of GDP3.1LebanonLebanon: 3 % of GDP3GreeceGreece: 3 % of GDP3SingaporeSingapore: 2.8 % of GDP2.8IndiaIndia: 2.8 % of GDP2.8TunisiaTunisia: 2.7 % of GDP2.7South KoreaSouth Korea: 2.6 % of GDP2.6Republic of the CongoRepublic of the Congo: 2.6 % of GDP2.6UgandaUganda: 2.5 % of GDP2.5EcuadorEcuador: 2.5 % of GDP2.5MauritaniaMauritania: 2.4 % of GDP2.4SerbiaSerbia: 2.3 % of GDP2.3PolandPoland: 2.3 % of GDP2.3EstoniaEstonia: 2.3 % of GDP2.3LatviaLatvia: 2.2 % of GDP2.2ChadChad: 2.2 % of GDP2.2BurundiBurundi: 2.2 % of GDP2.2IranIran: 2.2 % of GDP2.2TogoTogo: 2.2 % of GDP2.2
% of GDP. Source: World Bank. Retrieved 2026-10-09.

Full ranking

RankCountries2020
% of GDP		Change on 2019
1Saudi Arabia8.4+1.1 pts
2Oman8+0.6 pts
3Kuwait6.3+1 pts
4Algeria5.9+0.6 pts
5Azerbaijan5.2+1.4 pts
6Israel5.1+0.2 pts
7Armenia5+0.2 pts
8Jordan4.7+0.1 pts
9Ukraine4.4+0.3 pts
10Russia4.1+0.3 pts
11Bahrain4.10 pts
12Morocco4+1.1 pts
13United States3.6+0.2 pts
14Brunei3.6+0.6 pts
15Colombia3.5+0.4 pts
16Pakistan3.5-0 pts
17Namibia3.5+0.2 pts
18Mali3.4+0.6 pts
19Botswana3.3+0.3 pts
20Myanmar3.3+1.2 pts
21Iraq3.1-0.1 pts
22Kyrgyzstan3.1+0.4 pts
23Lebanon3-1.7 pts
24Greece3+0.4 pts
25Singapore2.80 pts
26India2.8+0.3 pts
27Tunisia2.7+0.3 pts
28South Korea2.6+0.1 pts
29Republic of the Congo2.6+0.5 pts
30Uganda2.5+0.7 pts
31Ecuador2.5+0.3 pts
32Mauritania2.4+0.4 pts
33Serbia2.3+0.1 pts
34Poland2.3+0.3 pts
35Estonia2.3+0.3 pts
36Latvia2.2+0.1 pts
37Chad2.2+0.6 pts
38Burundi2.2-0.6 pts
39Iran2.20 pts
40Togo2.2-0.2 pts
41Türkiye2.2-0.5 pts
42United Kingdom2.1+0.2 pts
43Burkina Faso2.1-0.1 pts
44Vietnam2.1-0.1 pts
45Chile2.1+0.2 pts
46Lithuania2+0.1 pts
47Uruguay2+0.2 pts
48Mozambique2+0.6 pts
49France2+0.2 pts
50Romania2+0.2 pts
51Australia2+0.1 pts
52Norway2+0.1 pts
53Cyprus1.9+0.1 pts
54Lesotho1.90 pts
55South Sudan1.9-1.9 pts
56Central African Republic1.9+0.1 pts
57Eswatini1.9-0 pts
58Slovakia1.8+0.1 pts
59Angola1.80 pts
60Georgia1.80 pts
61Cambodia1.8+0.2 pts
62Timor-Leste1.8+0.1 pts
63Sri Lanka1.80 pts
64Montenegro1.8+0.4 pts
65Hungary1.7+0.4 pts
66Niger1.7-0.2 pts
67China1.7+0.1 pts
68Gabon1.7+0.1 pts
69Jamaica1.70 pts
70Croatia1.7+0.1 pts
71Italy1.7+0.4 pts
72Equatorial Guinea1.6+0.3 pts
73Fiji1.6+0.2 pts
74Belarus1.6-0.1 pts
75Bulgaria1.6-1.6 pts
76Guinea-Bissau1.50 pts
77Rwanda1.5+0.3 pts
78Guinea1.5-0 pts
79Honduras1.5-0.1 pts
80Thailand1.5+0.1 pts
81Portugal1.4+0.1 pts
82Finland1.4+0.1 pts
83Canada1.4+0.2 pts
84Senegal1.4-0.1 pts
85Netherlands1.4+0.1 pts
86Guyana1.4+0.1 pts
87Bolivia1.4-0.1 pts
88El Salvador1.4+0.2 pts
89Belize1.4+0.3 pts
90Denmark1.4+0.1 pts
91Seychelles1.4+0.2 pts
92Afghanistan1.4+0.2 pts
93Spain1.4+0.1 pts
94Germany1.4+0.1 pts
95New Zealand1.30 pts
96Brazil1.3-0.1 pts
97Nepal1.3+0.1 pts
98Peru1.3+0.1 pts
99Philippines1.3+0.2 pts
100Albania1.30 pts
101Czechia1.3+0.1 pts
102Bangladesh1.30 pts
103North Macedonia1.2-0 pts
104Zambia1.2-0.1 pts
105Sweden1.2+0.1 pts
106Somalia1.1+0.3 pts
107Egypt1.1-0.1 pts
108Kenya1.1-0 pts
109Slovenia1.10 pts
110Tanzania1.10 pts
111Paraguay1+0.1 pts
112Belgium1+0.1 pts
113Malaysia1+0.1 pts
114Japan10 pts
115Sudan1-0.7 pts
116Zimbabwe1+0.3 pts
117Cameroon1-0.1 pts
118Côte d’Ivoire1+0.1 pts
119South Africa1+0.1 pts
120Tajikistan0.9-0 pts
121Kazakhstan0.9-0.1 pts
122Indonesia0.9+0.2 pts
123Austria0.9+0.1 pts
124Malawi0.8+0.1 pts
125Bosnia and Herzegovina0.80 pts
126Gambia0.80 pts
127Trinidad and Tobago0.8+0.1 pts
128Switzerland0.8+0.1 pts
129Dominican Republic0.7+0.1 pts
130Argentina0.70 pts
131Democratic Republic of the Congo0.70 pts
132Mexico0.7+0.2 pts
133Mongolia0.70 pts
134Madagascar0.7+0.1 pts
135Nigeria0.6+0.2 pts
136Nicaragua0.60 pts
137Cape Verde0.6+0.2 pts
138Malta0.50 pts
139Luxembourg0.50 pts
140Sierra Leone0.5+0.1 pts
141Ethiopia0.5-0.1 pts
142Benin0.5-0 pts
143Guatemala0.40 pts
144Liberia0.40 pts
145Papua New Guinea0.40 pts
146Moldova0.40 pts
147Ghana0.40 pts
148Ireland0.3-0 pts
149Mauritius0.20 pts
150Haiti0.10 pts
151Costa Rica00 pts
151Iceland00 pts
151Panama00 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. 12 countries with data in other periods have no value for 2020 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?

Saudi Arabia, with 8.4% of GDP in 2020, according to the World Bank.

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

Panama, with 0% of GDP in 2020.

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. 12 countries have no value for 2020 and are not ranked.

Military expenditure: other rankings

Countries: more rankings