Countries Ranked by Armed forces personnel (2020)
Armed forces personnel: each country's latest value (2015–2020), ranked from highest to lowest. Source: The World Bank (CC BY 4.0).
Summary
India ranks #1 with 3.07 million personnel. China is second with 2.54 million personnel, 21% behind. The top five are India, China, Korea, Dem. People's Rep., Russian Federation and United States. Together the top 10 account for 50.6% of the total across the 170 countries listed. The median across all 170 is 33,000 personnel; Seychelles is last at 0 personnel. India's figure has risen 38% since 1996 (2.22 million personnel to 3.07 million personnel in 2020).
- #1
- India · 3.07 million personnel
- Median
- 33,000 personnel
- Coverage
- 170 countries
- Data year
- 2020
- Last updated
- 2026-11-14
India 11.3%China 9.3%Korea, Dem. People's Rep. 5.4%Russian Federation 5.3%United States 5.1%All others 63.6%
Full ranking
| Rank | Country | Armed forces personnel (personnel) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | India | 3,068,000 |
| 2 | China | 2,535,000 |
| 3 | Korea, Dem. People's Rep. | 1,469,000 |
| 4 | Russian Federation | 1,454,000 |
| 5 | United States | 1,395,000 |
| 6 | Pakistan | 943,000 |
| 7 | Egypt, Arab Rep. | 836,000 |
| 8 | Brazil | 762,000 |
| 9 | Indonesia | 676,000 |
| 10 | Iran, Islamic Rep. | 650,000 |
| 11 | Korea, Rep. | 569,000 |
| 12 | Viet Nam | 522,000 |
| 13 | Türkiye | 512,000 |
| 14 | Myanmar | 463,000 |
| 15 | Iraq | 459,000 |
| 16 | Thailand | 455,000 |
| 17 | Colombia | 428,000 |
| 18 | Venezuela, RB | 343,000 |
| 19 | Mexico | 341,000 |
| 20 | Italy | 338,000 |
| 21 | Algeria | 326,000 |
| 22 | Sri Lanka | 317,000 |
| 23 | France | 304,000 |
| 24 | Ukraine | 298,000 |
| 25 | Saudi Arabia | 282,000 |
| 26 | Syrian Arab Republic | 269,000 |
| 27 | Japan | 261,000 |
| 28 | Morocco | 246,000 |
| 29 | Bangladesh | 227,000 |
| 30 | Nigeria | 223,000 |
| 31 | Eritrea | 202,000 |
| 32 | Spain | 199,000 |
| 33 | Cambodia | 191,000 |
| 34 | Poland | 189,000 |
| 35 | Germany | 183,000 |
| 36 | Israel | 178,000 |
| 37 | Afghanistan | 165,000 |
| 38 | Belarus | 158,000 |
| 39 | Peru | 158,000 |
| 40 | Philippines | 157,000 |
| 41 | United Kingdom | 153,000 |
| 42 | Greece | 147,000 |
| 43 | Sudan | 144,000 |
| 44 | Ethiopia | 138,000 |
| 45 | Malaysia | 136,000 |
| 46 | Congo, Dem. Rep. | 134,000 |
| 47 | Lao PDR | 129,000 |
| 48 | Romania | 128,000 |
| 49 | Angola | 117,000 |
| 50 | Jordan | 116,000 |
| 51 | Chile | 114,000 |
| 52 | Nepal | 112,000 |
| 53 | Argentina | 103,000 |
| 54 | South Africa | 89,000 |
| 55 | Azerbaijan | 82,000 |
| 56 | Lebanon | 80,000 |
| 57 | Cuba | 76,000 |
| 58 | Canada | 72,000 |
| 59 | Bolivia | 71,000 |
| 60 | Dominican Republic | 71,000 |
| 61 | Kazakhstan | 71,000 |
| 62 | Uzbekistan | 68,000 |
| 63 | United Arab Emirates | 63,000 |
| 64 | Australia | 60,000 |
| 65 | Singapore | 59,000 |
| 66 | Turkmenistan | 57,000 |
| 67 | South Sudan | 53,000 |
| 68 | Portugal | 52,000 |
| 69 | Zimbabwe | 51,000 |
| 70 | Tunisia | 48,000 |
| 71 | Armenia | 47,000 |
| 72 | Oman | 47,000 |
| 73 | Hungary | 46,000 |
| 74 | Uganda | 46,000 |
| 75 | Chad | 45,000 |
| 76 | Guatemala | 43,000 |
| 77 | Ecuador | 42,000 |
| 78 | El Salvador | 42,000 |
| 79 | Mali | 41,000 |
| 80 | Netherlands | 41,000 |
| 81 | Yemen, Rep. | 40,000 |
| 82 | Bulgaria | 37,000 |
| 83 | Lithuania | 37,000 |
| 84 | Rwanda | 35,000 |
| 85 | Cameroon | 34,000 |
| 86 | Serbia | 32,000 |
| 87 | Burundi | 31,000 |
| 88 | Paraguay | 29,000 |
| 89 | Panama | 28,000 |
| 90 | Tanzania | 28,000 |
| 91 | Côte d'Ivoire | 27,000 |
| 92 | Czechia | 27,000 |
| 93 | Georgia | 26,000 |
| 94 | Kuwait | 25,000 |
| 95 | Norway | 25,000 |
| 96 | Belgium | 24,000 |
| 97 | Kenya | 24,000 |
| 98 | Austria | 23,000 |
| 99 | Honduras | 23,000 |
| 100 | Finland | 22,000 |
Showing the top 100 of 170. Premium downloads the full list as CSV or JSON.
About the top 10
#1 India
India ranks #1 on this list with 3.07 million personnel.
- Capital
- New Delhi
- Continent
- Asia
- Income group
- Lower middle income
- Population
- 1.46 billion people (2025)
- GDP
- US$3.96 trillion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$2,703 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 72.2 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 35.7% of population (2025)
Largest cities: Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru.
Also ranks #1 in population · #1 in rural population · #1 in remittances received.
#2 China
China ranks #2 on this list with 2.54 million personnel.
- Capital
- Beijing
- Continent
- Asia
- Income group
- Upper middle income
- Population
- 1.41 billion people (2025)
- GDP
- US$19.5 trillion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$13,862 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 78 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 66.3% of population (2025)
Largest cities: Chongqing, Shanghai, Beijing.
Also ranks #1 in urban population · #1 in gdp ppp · #1 in labour force size.
#3 Korea, Dem. People's Rep.
Korea, Dem. People's Rep. ranks #3 on this list with 1.47 million personnel.
- Capital
- Pyongyang
- Continent
- Asia
- Income group
- Low income
- Population
- 26.57 million people (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 73.7 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 64.2% of population (2025)
- CO2 emissions per person
- 2.5 t CO2e per person (2024)
- Currency
- North Korean won
Largest cities: Pyongyang.
Also ranks #2 in hospital beds per 10,000 · #6 in female labour force participation · #7 in labour force participation rate.
#4 Russian Federation
Russian Federation ranks #4 on this list with 1.45 million personnel.
- Capital
- Moscow
- Continent
- Europe
- Income group
- High income
- Population
- 143.51 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$2.56 trillion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$17,547 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 73.4 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 75.3% of population (2025)
Largest cities: Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Novosibirsk.
Also ranks #1 in land area · #1 in surface area · #1 in forest area.
#5 United States
United States ranks #5 on this list with 1.4 million personnel.
- Capital
- Washington, D.C.
- Continent
- North America
- Income group
- High income
- Population
- 341.78 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$30.77 trillion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$90,027 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 78.9 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 80.2% of population (2025)
Largest cities: New York metropolitan area, New York City, Chicago.
Also ranks #1 in gdp (current us$) · #1 in health expenditure per capita · #1 in imports of goods and services.
#6 Pakistan
Pakistan ranks #6 on this list with 943,000 personnel.
- Capital
- Islamabad
- Continent
- Asia
- Income group
- Lower middle income
- Population
- 255.22 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$407.31 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$1,596 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 67.8 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 39.5% of population (2025)
Largest cities: Karachi, Lahore, Faisalabad.
Also ranks #1 in diabetes prevalence · #2 in children out of school (primary) · #3 in rural population.
#7 Egypt, Arab Rep.
Egypt, Arab Rep. ranks #7 on this list with 836,000 personnel.
- Capital
- Cairo
- Continent
- Africa
- Income group
- Lower middle income
- Population
- 118.37 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$365.25 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$3,086 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 71.8 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 42.9% of population (2025)
Largest cities: Cairo, Alexandria, Giza.
Also ranks #1 in irrigated land share · #3 in deposit interest rate · #5 in remittances received.
#8 Brazil
Brazil ranks #8 on this list with 762,000 personnel.
- Capital
- Brasília
- Continent
- South America
- Income group
- Upper middle income
- Population
- 212.81 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$2.28 trillion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$10,713 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 76 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 88.2% of population (2025)
Largest cities: Greater Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro.
Also ranks #1 in new businesses registered · #2 in forest area · #3 in external debt stocks.
#9 Indonesia
Indonesia ranks #9 on this list with 676,000 personnel.
- Capital
- Jakarta
- Continent
- Asia
- Income group
- Upper middle income
- Population
- 285.72 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$1.45 trillion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$5,060 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 71.3 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 59.4% of population (2025)
Largest cities: Jakarta, Surabaya, Bandung.
Also ranks #2 in fish production · #4 in population · #4 in labour force size.
#10 Iran, Islamic Rep.
Iran, Islamic Rep. ranks #10 on this list with 650,000 personnel.
- Capital
- Tehran
- Continent
- Asia
- Income group
- Upper middle income
- Population
- 92.42 million people (2025)
- GDP
- US$362.68 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$3,924 (2025)
- Life expectancy
- 77.9 years (2024)
- Urban population
- 77.4% of population (2025)
Largest cities: Tehran, Isfahan, Ahvaz.
Also ranks #1 in refugee population by asylum · #2 in official exchange rate · #4 in gross capital formation rate.
Profile facts: World Bank (CC BY 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0); weather links go to Purr Weather, another ChowChow Labs site.
Source and method
Armed forces personnel: each country's latest value (2015–2020), ranked from highest to lowest.
Source: The World Bank, indicator MS.MIL.TOTL.P1. Licence: CC BY 4.0. Retrieved: 2026-11-14.
The World Bank: Armed forces personnel, total: The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies (via World Development Indicators)
Original data provider, as recorded by the World Bank: The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
Values are shown as published. Provider terms: The World Bank. All licences: Sources & licences.