Russia’s invasion of Ukraine may well mark the largest shift in the balance of power in Europe since the end of the Cold War – and may also prove to be the largest military conflict on the continent since World War II. The invasion, which has been described as a full-scale attack, comes after four consecutive years of rising military spending worldwide.
A large share of military spending typically goes towards weapons development and improving defensive capabilities, which, along with strategic international alliances, are meant to deter acts of aggression. NATO, a military alliance that includes the U.S. and 29 other countries, was formed after World War II, specifically to check potential aggression from the Soviet Union. NATO members are expected to spend at least 2% of their GDP on defense.
Notably, Ukraine is both a former Soviet republic and an aspiring NATO member. Though Russian military spending topped $61.7 billion in 2020, eclipsing Ukraine’s expenditure of $5.9 billion, it is a small fraction of U.S. military spending, which, at over $778 billion in 2020, is far and away the largest in the world.
Using data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, compiled by the World Bank, 24/7 Wall St. identified the countries spending the most on war. Countries are ranked by their 2020 military expenditure in current U.S. dollars.
We also reviewed data on spending as a share of GDP, which, among the countries on this list, ranges from 0.6% to 10.9%. Total armed services personnel in the countries on this list range from 15,000 up to 3 million. Here is a look at the companies profiting the most from war.
In each of these measures, Ukraine is outmatched by Russia. Ukraine spends the equivalent of 4.1% of its GDP on its military, compared to Russia’s 4.3% expenditure, and its military personnel total just 311,000, compared to 1.5 million in Russia.
Click here to see how Russia and Ukraine military spending compares to the world.
Click here to read our detailed methodology.
Source: mtcurado / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
40. Portugal
> Military spending, 2020: $4.6 billion (2.1% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 52,000 (1.0% of labor force)
>Total population: 10,305,564
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Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
39. Morocco
> Military spending, 2020: $4.8 billion (4.3% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 246,000 (2.0% of labor force)
>Total population: 36,910,558
Source: Plougmann / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
38. Denmark
> Military spending, 2020: $5.0 billion (1.4% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 15,000 (0.5% of labor force)
>Total population: 5,831,404
Source: SanerG / iStock via Getty Images
37. Greece
> Military spending, 2020: $5.3 billion (2.8% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 147,000 (3.1% of labor force)
>Total population: 10,715,549
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Source: Alexandros Michailidis / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
36. Belgium
> Military spending, 2020: $5.5 billion (1.1% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 26,000 (0.5% of labor force)
>Total population: 11,555,997
Source: hxyume / iStock Unreleased via Getty Images
35. Switzerland
> Military spending, 2020: $5.7 billion (0.8% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 20,000 (0.4% of labor force)
>Total population: 8,636,896
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Source: emicristea / Getty Images
34. Romania
> Military spending, 2020: $5.7 billion (2.3% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 126,000 (1.4% of labor force)
>Total population: 19,286,123
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33. Ukraine
> Military spending, 2020: $5.9 billion (4.1% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 311,000 (1.5% of labor force)
>Total population: 44,134,693
Source: Azael Rodriguez / Getty Images Sport via Getty Images
32. Mexico
> Military spending, 2020: $6.1 billion (0.6% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 328,000 (0.6% of labor force)
>Total population: 128,932,753
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31. Sweden
> Military spending, 2020: $6.5 billion (1.2% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 15,000 (0.3% of labor force)
>Total population: 10,353,442
Source: Lukas Bischoff / iStock via Getty Images
30. Oman
> Military spending, 2020: $6.7 billion (10.9% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 47,000 (1.7% of labor force)
>Total population: 5,106,622
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Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
29. Kuwait
> Military spending, 2020: $6.9 billion (6.5% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 25,000 (1.0% of labor force)
>Total population: 4,270,563
Source: Wathiq Khuzaie / Getty Images News via Getty Images
28. Iraq
> Military spending, 2020: $7.0 billion (4.1% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 341,000 (3.3% of labor force)
>Total population: 40,222,503
Source: 12MN / iStock via Getty Images
27. Norway
> Military spending, 2020: $7.1 billion (1.9% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 23,000 (0.8% of labor force)
>Total population: 5,379,475
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Source: Paula Bronstein / Getty Images
26. Thailand
> Military spending, 2020: $7.3 billion (1.5% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 455,000 (1.2% of labor force)
>Total population: 69,799,978
Source: Joel Carillet / iStock via Getty Images
25. Colombia
> Military spending, 2020: $9.2 billion (3.4% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 481,000 (1.8% of labor force)
>Total population: 50,882,884
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24. Indonesia
> Military spending, 2020: $9.4 billion (0.9% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 676,000 (0.5% of labor force)
>Total population: 273,523,621
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
23. Algeria
> Military spending, 2020: $9.7 billion (6.7% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 317,000 (2.5% of labor force)
>Total population: 43,851,043
Source: John Moore / Getty Images
22. Pakistan
> Military spending, 2020: $10.4 billion (4.0% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 943,000 (1.3% of labor force)
>Total population: 220,892,331
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21. Singapore
> Military spending, 2020: $10.9 billion (3.2% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 59,000 (1.7% of labor force)
>Total population: 5,685,807
Source: thehague / iStock Editorial via Getty Images
20. Netherlands
> Military spending, 2020: $12.6 billion (1.4% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 41,000 (0.4% of labor force)
>Total population: 17,441,139
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Source: Joel Carillet / iStock via Getty Images
19. Poland
> Military spending, 2020: $13.0 billion (2.2% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 189,000 (1.0% of labor force)
>Total population: 37,950,802
Source: Handout / Getty Images News via Getty Images
18. Iran
> Military spending, 2020: $15.8 billion (2.2% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 650,000 (2.4% of labor force)
>Total population: 83,992,953
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
17. Spain
> Military spending, 2020: $17.4 billion (1.4% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 199,000 (0.9% of labor force)
>Total population: 47,351,567
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Source: Burak Kara / Getty Images
16. Turkey
> Military spending, 2020: $17.7 billion (2.8% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 512,000 (1.5% of labor force)
>Total population: 84,339,067
Source: Mario Tama / Getty Images
15. Brazil
> Military spending, 2020: $19.7 billion (1.4% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 762,000 (0.7% of labor force)
>Total population: 212,559,409
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Source: Joel Carillet / Getty Images
14. Israel
> Military spending, 2020: $21.7 billion (5.6% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 178,000 (4.3% of labor force)
>Total population: 9,216,900
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Source: Aolin Chen / iStock via Getty Images
13. Canada
> Military spending, 2020: $22.8 billion (1.4% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 72,000 (0.3% of labor force)
>Total population: 38,005,238
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
12. Australia
> Military spending, 2020: $27.5 billion (2.1% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 59,000 (0.4% of labor force)
>Total population: 25,687,041
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11. Italy
> Military spending, 2020: $28.9 billion (1.6% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 342,000 (1.3% of labor force)
>Total population: 59,554,023
Source: Chung Sung-Jun / Getty Images News via Getty Images
10. South Korea
> Military spending, 2020: $45.7 billion (2.8% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 613,000 (2.1% of labor force)
>Total population: 51,780,579
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9. Japan
> Military spending, 2020: $49.1 billion (1.0% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 261,000 (0.4% of labor force)
>Total population: 125,836,021
Source: Jeff J Mitchell / Getty Images News via Getty Images
8. France
> Military spending, 2020: $52.7 billion (2.1% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 304,000 (1.0% of labor force)
>Total population: 67,391,582
Source: bluejayphoto / iStock via Getty Images
7. Germany
> Military spending, 2020: $52.8 billion (1.4% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 184,000 (0.4% of labor force)
>Total population: 83,240,525
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6. Saudi Arabia
> Military spending, 2020: $57.5 billion (8.4% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 252,000 (1.7% of labor force)
>Total population: 34,813,867
Source: Scott Nelson / Getty Images
5. United Kingdom
> Military spending, 2020: $59.2 billion (2.2% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 149,000 (0.4% of labor force)
>Total population: 67,215,293
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4. Russian Federation
> Military spending, 2020: $61.7 billion (4.3% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 1,454,000 (2.0% of labor force)
>Total population: 144,104,080
Source: Daniel Berehulak / Getty Images News via Getty Images
3. India
> Military spending, 2020: $72.9 billion (2.9% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 3,045,000 (0.6% of labor force)
>Total population: 1,380,004,385
Source: Kevin Frayer / Getty Images
2. China
> Military spending, 2020: $252.3 billion (1.7% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 2,535,000 (0.3% of labor force)
>Total population: 1,410,929,362
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1. United States
> Military spending, 2020: $778.2 billion (3.7% of GDP)
> Military and paramilitary personnel: 1,388,000 (0.8% of labor force)
>Total population: 329,484,123
Methodology
To determine the countries spending the most on war, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed military expenditure in current U.S. dollars in 2020 from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, compiled by the World Bank. Military expenditure covers the expenditures on current military forces and activities, including salaries and benefits, operational expenses, arms and equipment purchases, military construction, research and development, central administration, command, and support.
Supplemental data on military expenditure as a percentage of GDP also came from SIPRI. We also reviewed World Bank data on military personnel from 2019, the most recent year of available data. Personnel counts include active-duty military personnel as well as paramilitary personnel. Population data for 2020 came from the World Bank.
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