The most powerful navy doesn’t mean it’s the navy with the biggest fleet. While the U.S. is considered to have the world’s most powerful navy on Earth, it’s not the world’s largest navy. The U.S. Navy was the largest in the world by the end of WWII. But today, with a fleet size of 472 ships and submarines, the U.S. has the world’s fourth-largest naval fleet. The strength of the U.S. Navy comes from its seven fleets stationed across the world, including attack submarines, aircraft carriers, and large combat vessels.
To identify the countries with the most military ships and submarines, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 2024 Military Strength Ranking from Global Firepower, an annually updated defense-related statistics website with information on 145 countries. We ranked countries on the total number of military ships and submarines in their fleet. We included supplemental information regarding submarines, aircraft carriers, destroyers, corvettes, patrol vessels, and frigates, as well as each country’s overall military strength score.
Why We’re Writing About This
The sheer size of a country’s naval fleet can illustrate a major aspect of the nation’s military strength and influence. During conflicts, these forces are often the first to rally for defense and provide incredible firepower against opponents. However, even during times of peace, naval fleets help to patrol global trade and major sea lanes.
Here is a look at the countries with the most military ships and submarines.
30. Bangladesh
- Total ships and submarines: 117
- Total submarines: 2
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 6
- Frigates: 7
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 55
- Military strength score: 0.5419 – #37 out of 145
29. United Kingdom
- Total ships and submarines: 117
- Total submarines: 10
- Aircraft carriers: 2
- Corvettes: 0
- Frigates: 11
- Destroyers: 6
- Patrol vessels:: 26
- Military strength score: 0.1443 – #6 out of 145
28. Morocco
- Total ships and submarines: 121
- Total submarines: 0
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 1
- Frigates: 6
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 22
- Military strength score: 1.0081 – #61 out of 145
27. Kuwait
- Total ships and submarines: 123
- Total submarines: 0
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 0
- Frigates: 0
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 106
- Military strength score: 1.4261 – #77 out of 145
26. Qatar
- Total ships and submarines: 123
- Total submarines: 0
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 4
- Frigates: 0
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 20
- Military strength score: 1.0789 – #63 out of 145
25. France
- Total ships and submarines: 128
- Total submarines: 9
- Aircraft carriers: 1
- Corvettes: 0
- Frigates: 11
- Destroyers: 10
- Patrol vessels:: 15
- Military strength score: 0.1878 – #11 out of 145
24. Chile
- Total ships and submarines: 130
- Total submarines: 4
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 0
- Frigates: 8
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 40
- Military strength score: 0.8128 – #52 out of 145
23. Nigeria
- Total ships and submarines: 133
- Total submarines: 0
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 0
- Frigates: 1
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 109
- Military strength score: 0.5619 – #39 out of 145
22. Brazil
- Total ships and submarines: 134
- Total submarines: 4
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 2
- Frigates: 6
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 23
- Military strength score: 0.1944 – #12 out of 145
21. Egypt
- Total ships and submarines: 140
- Total submarines: 8
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 7
- Frigates: 13
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 42
- Military strength score: 0.2283 – #15 out of 145
20. Japan
- Total ships and submarines: 155
- Total submarines: 23
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 6
- Frigates: 4
- Destroyers: 36
- Patrol vessels:: 6
- Military strength score: 0.1601 – #7 out of 145
19. Spain
- Total ships and submarines: 168
- Total submarines: 3
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 0
- Frigates: 11
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 23
- Military strength score: 0.2882 – #20 out of 145
18. Turkey
- Total ships and submarines: 186
- Total submarines: 12
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 9
- Frigates: 16
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 34
- Military strength score: 0.1697 – #8 out of 145
17. Greece
- Total ships and submarines: 187
- Total submarines: 11
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 0
- Frigates: 13
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 35
- Military strength score: 0.4349 – #32 out of 145
16. Mexico
- Total ships and submarines: 194
- Total submarines: 0
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 4
- Frigates: 11
- Destroyers: 5
- Patrol vessels:: 150
- Military strength score: 0.4274 – #31 out of 145
15. South Korea
- Total ships and submarines: 200
- Total submarines: 22
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 5
- Frigates: 17
- Destroyers: 13
- Patrol vessels:: 35
- Military strength score: 0.1416 – #5 out of 145
14. Algeria
- Total ships and submarines: 213
- Total submarines: 6
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 16
- Frigates: 8
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 75
- Military strength score: 0.3589 – #26 out of 145
13. Myanmar
- Total ships and submarines: 227
- Total submarines: 3
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 3
- Frigates: 6
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 124
- Military strength score: 0.5251 – #35 out of 145
12. Colombia
- Total ships and submarines: 237
- Total submarines: 4
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 2
- Frigates: 9
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 219
- Military strength score: 0.7347 – #44 out of 145
11. Finland
- Total ships and submarines: 246
- Total submarines: 0
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 0
- Frigates: 0
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 8
- Military strength score: 0.7967 – #50 out of 145
10. Sri Lanka
- Total ships and submarines: 270
- Total submarines: 0
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 0
- Frigates: 5
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 59
- Military strength score: 1.3459 – #75 out of 145
9. Thailand
- Total ships and submarines: 293
- Total submarines: 0
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 6
- Frigates: 7
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 49
- Military strength score: 0.3389 – #25 out of 145
8. India
- Total ships and submarines: 294
- Total submarines: 18
- Aircraft carriers: 2
- Corvettes: 18
- Frigates: 12
- Destroyers: 12
- Patrol vessels:: 137
- Military strength score: 0.1023 – #4 out of 145
7. Italy
- Total ships and submarines: 309
- Total submarines: 8
- Aircraft carriers: 2
- Corvettes: 0
- Frigates: 13
- Destroyers: 4
- Patrol vessels:: 18
- Military strength score: 0.1863 – #10 out of 145
6. Indonesia
- Total ships and submarines: 333
- Total submarines: 4
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 25
- Frigates: 8
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 205
- Military strength score: 0.2251 – #13 out of 145
5. Sweden
- Total ships and submarines: 353
- Total submarines: 5
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 7
- Frigates: 0
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 298
- Military strength score: 0.4009 – #29 out of 145
4. United States
- Total ships and submarines: 472
- Total submarines: 64
- Aircraft carriers: 11
- Corvettes: 23
- Frigates: 0
- Destroyers: 75
- Patrol vessels:: 5
- Military strength score: 0.0699 – #1 out of 145
3. North Korea
- Total ships and submarines: 505
- Total submarines: 35
- Aircraft carriers: 0
- Corvettes: 4
- Frigates: 1
- Destroyers: 0
- Patrol vessels:: 169
- Military strength score: 0.5313 – #36 out of 145
2. China
- Total ships and submarines: 730
- Total submarines: 61
- Aircraft carriers: 2
- Corvettes: 72
- Frigates: 42
- Destroyers: 49
- Patrol vessels:: 150
- Military strength score: 0.0706 – #3 out of 145
1. Russia
- Total ships and submarines: 781
- Total submarines: 65
- Aircraft carriers: 1
- Corvettes: 83
- Frigates: 12
- Destroyers: 14
- Patrol vessels:: 122
- Military strength score: 0.0702 – #2 out of 145
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