World War II was one of the bloodiest conflicts that this world has ever known, with nearly 15 million military personnel and 38 million civilians perishing over the course of the war. War raged from the fields of Europe to the waters of the Pacific between the Allied and Axis Powers, engulfing nations across the globe in this conflict. (These are World War II’s biggest battles.)
Throughout the war, there were pivotal battles that turned the tide for one side or the other but these all came at great cost. The military assets and casualties from WWII would ultimately shape the new world that would rise from the ashes for many decades to come.
To identify the major World War II battles with the most casualties, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed WWII battles from World War 2 Facts, an online database of WWII battles. We ranked these battles based on the total military casualties, including killed, missing, captured, or wounded. We included supplementary information regarding total casualties on the Axis and Allied sides, as well as the troops and military assets present on both sides. We also included the start date on which these battles took place. Some supplementary information was obtained from various other military and historical sources.
The Battle of the Bulge is largely considered one of the biggest turning points in the war primarily because it was the last major offensive that Germany launched on Western Europe. Allied Forces clashed with German Panzer tanks and other Axis Forces for more than a month in the Ardennes Forest.
More than 840,000 Allied troops put a stop to the advance of 500,000 Germans with each side suffering severe casualties in what was one of the largest battles fought by U.S. troops in the war. The battle raged between Dec. 16, 1944, and Jan. 28, 1945, and resulted in nearly a combined 160,000 soldiers missing, wounded, or killed. (These are the tanks, vehicles, and artillery that fought the Battle of the Bulge.)
Here is a look at the major World War II battles with the most casualties:
36. Battle of Savo Island
Source: national_museum_of_the_us_navy / Flickr
- Total casualties: 1,135
- Allied casualties: 1,077
- Axis casualties: 58
- Allied powers present: 6 heavy cruisers, 2 light cruisers, 15 destroyers
- Axis powers present: 5 heavy cruisers, 2 light cruisers, 1 destroyer
- Date: August 1942
- Location: Savo Island
35. Operation Battleaxe
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
- Total casualties: 1,647
- Allied casualties: 969
- Axis casualties: 678
- Allied powers present: 20,000+ men, 220 tanks, 203 aircraft
- Axis powers present: 13,200 men, 194 tanks, 214 aircraft
- Date: June 1941
- Location: Cyrenaica, Libya
34. Battle of the Coral Sea
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
- Total casualties: 1,656
- Allied casualties: 656
- Axis casualties: 1,000
- Allied powers present: 2 fleet carriers, 9 cruisers, 13 destroyers, 128 carrier aircraft
- Axis powers present: 2 fleet carriers, 1 light carrier, 9 cruisers, 15 destroyers, 127 carrier aircraft
- Date: May 1942
- Location: Coral Sea
33. Siege of Bastogne
Source: falcon_33 / Flickr
- Total casualties: 3000 (at least)
- Allied casualties: 3,000
- Axis casualties: Unknown
- Allied powers present: 22,800 men, 101st Airborne division, CCB 10th armored division, 705th Tank Destroyer Battalion
- Axis powers present: 54,000 men, 7 German Divisions
- Date: December 1944
- Location: Bastogne, Belgium
32. Battle of the Philippine Sea
Source: eli_dark / Flickr
- Total casualties: 3,096
- Allied casualties: 109
- Axis casualties: 2,987
- Allied powers present: 7 fleet carriers, 8 light carriers, 7 battleships, 28 submarines, 956 aircraft, 99,000 men
- Axis powers present: 5 fleet carriers, 4 light carriers, 5 battleships, 24 submarines, 450 carrier-based aircraft, 300 land-based aircraft
- Date: September 1944
- Location: Philippine Sea
31. Battle of Midway
Source: national_museum_of_the_us_navy / Flickr
- Total casualties: 3,364
- Allied casualties: 307
- Axis casualties: 3,057
- Allied powers present: 3 aircraft carriers, 25 support ships, 233 carrier aircraft, 127 land-based aircraft
- Axis powers present: 4 aircraft carriers, 2 battleships, 15 support ships (cruisers and destroyers), 248 carrier aircraft
- Date: June 1942
- Location: Midway Atoll
30. Battle of Pearl Harbor
Source: digidreamgrafix / Shutterstock.com
- Total casualties: 3,714
- Allied casualties: 3,649
- Axis casualties: 65
- Allied powers present: 8 battleships, 8 cruisers, 30 destroyers, 4 submarines, 390 aircraft
- Axis powers present: 6 aircraft carriers, 2 battleships, 2 heavy cruisers, 1 light cruiser, 9 destroyers, 28 submarines, 414 aircraft
- Date: December 1941
- Location: Oahu, United States
29. Operation Torch
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
- Total casualties: 4,542
- Allied casualties: 1,199
- Axis casualties: 3,343
- Allied powers present: 107,000 men
- Axis powers present: 60,000 men
- Date: November 1942
- Location: Northwest Africa
28. Battle of Britain
Source: Matt_Gibson / iStock via Getty Images
- Total casualties: 5,269
- Allied casualties: 966
- Axis casualties: 4,303
- Allied powers present: 1,963 serviceable aircraft
- Axis powers present: 2,550 serviceable aircraft
- Date: July 1940
- Location: English Channel
27. Battle of Wake Island
Source: arcticwarrior / Flickr
- Total casualties: 7,200
- Allied casualties: 1,200
- Axis casualties: 6,000
- Allied powers present: 449 USMC personnel, 6 artillery, 12 aircraft, 68 Navy personnel, 5 Army personnel
- Axis powers present: 3 light cruisers, 8 destroyers, 3 submarines, heavy cruisers, 2 aircraft carriers, 2,500 infantry
- Date: December 1941
- Location: Wake Island, U.S. territory
26. Battle of Tarawa
Source: Three Lions / Getty Images
- Total casualties: 8,504
- Allied casualties: 3,797
- Axis casualties: 4,707
- Allied powers present: 35,000 men
- Axis powers present: 3,000 men
- Date: November 1943
- Location: Betio Island, Tarawa Atoll, Gilbert Islands
25. Battle of the Kasserine Pass
Source: MPI / Archive Photos via Getty Images
- Total casualties: 12,000
- Allied casualties: 10,000
- Axis casualties: 2,000
- Allied powers present: 30,000 men
- Axis powers present: 22,000 men
- Date: November 1943
- Location: Kasserine, Tunisia
24. Battle of Leyte Gulf
Source: national_museum_of_the_us_navy / Flickr
- Total casualties: 13,500
- Allied casualties: 3,000
- Axis casualties: 10,500
- Allied powers present: 8 fleet carriers, 8 light carriers, 18 escort carriers, 12 battleships, 24 cruisers, 141 destroyers, 1,500 aircraft
- Axis powers present: 1 fleet carrier, 3 light carriers, 9 battleships, 14 heavy cruisers, 6 light cruisers, 35 destroyers, 300 aircraft
- Date: October 1944
- Location: Leyte Gulf, Philippines
23. Battle of Corregidor
Source: ajw1970 / Flickr
- Total casualties: 14,900
- Allied casualties: 12,800
- Axis casualties: 2,100
- Allied powers present: 13,000 men
- Axis powers present: 75,000 men
- Date: May 1942
- Location: Corregidor island, Philippines
22. Battle of Peleliu
Source: usnavy / Flickr
- Total casualties: 20,701
- Allied casualties: 9,804
- Axis casualties: 10,897
- Allied powers present: 28,484 men
- Axis powers present: 11,000 men
- Date: September 1944
- Location: Peleliu, Palau Islands
21. Operation Market Garden
Source: Everett Collection / Shutterstock.com
- Total casualties: 30,500
- Allied casualties: 17,200
- Axis casualties: 13,300
- Allied powers present: 41,628 airborne troops, 1 armored division, 2 infantry divisions, 1 armored brigade
- Axis powers present: 110,000 men, 9th and 10th SS Panzer Divisions
- Date: September 1944
- Location: Eindhoven-Nijmegen-Arnhem corridor, Netherlands
20. Battle of Crete
Source: archivesnz / Flickr
- Total casualties: 30,528
- Allied casualties: 23,830
- Axis casualties: 6,698
- Allied powers present: 40,000 men
- Axis powers present: 31,700 men, 500 transports, 610 aircraft
- Date: May 1941
- Location: Crete, Greece
19. Battle of Saipan
Source: usmcarchives / Flickr
- Total casualties: 38,234
- Allied casualties: 13,313
- Axis casualties: 24,921
- Allied powers present: 71,000 men
- Axis powers present: 31,000 men
- Date: June 1944
- Location: Saipan, Mariana Islands
18. Guadalcanal Campaign
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
- Total casualties: 39,100
- Allied casualties: 7,100
- Axis casualties: 32,000
- Allied powers present: 60,000 men, 1 aircraft carrier, 2 battleships, 2 heavy cruisers, 3 light cruisers, 12 destroyers
- Axis powers present: 36,200 men, 2 battleships, 6 heavy cruisers, 4 light cruisers, 16 destroyers
- Date: August 1942
- Location: Guadalcanal, British Solomon Islands
17. First Battle of El Alamein
Source: ksr8s / Flickr
- Total casualties: 44,102
- Allied casualties: 13,560
- Axis casualties: 30,542
- Allied powers present: 195,000 men, 1,029 tanks, 730-750 aircraft, 892-908 artillery pieces
- Axis powers present: 116,000 men, 547 tanks, 770-900 aircraft, 552 artillery pieces
- Date: July 1942
- Location: El Alamein, Egypt
16. Battle of Iwo Jima
Source: Hulton Archive / Archive Photos via Getty Images
- Total casualties: 48,091
- Allied casualties: 26,031
- Axis casualties: 22,060
- Allied powers present: 70,000 men
- Axis powers present: 22,060 men
- Date: February 1945
- Location: Iwo Jima, Japan
15. Siege of Tobruk
Source: queenslandstatearchives / Flickr
- Total casualties: 50,272
- Allied casualties: 5,929
- Axis casualties: 44,343
- Allied powers present: 9th, 18th, 20th, 24th Australian Brigades; 2 Australian Imperial Force, 7th, Australian Division; British 70th Infantry Division; Polish Independent Carpathian Rifle Brigade
- Axis powers present: Afrika Korps (German), Italian Army
- Date: April 1941
- Location: Tobruk, Libya
14. Warsaw Uprising
Source: Picture Post / Stringer / Wikimedia Commons
- Total casualties: 68,660
- Allied casualties: 36,000
- Axis casualties: 32,660
- Allied powers present: 49,000 men
- Axis powers present: 25,000 men
- Date: August 1944
- Location: Warsaw, Poland
13. Battle of Monte Cassino
Source: Keystone / Getty Images
- Total casualties: 75,000
- Allied casualties: 55,000
- Axis casualties: 20,000
- Allied powers present: US 5th Army, British 8th Army, 1,900 tanks, 4,000 aircraft
- Axis powers present: German 10th Army
- Date: January 1944
- Location: Monte Cassino, Italy
12. Battle of Dunkirk
Source: ajw1970 / Flickr
- Total casualties: 81,774
- Allied casualties: 61,774
- Axis casualties: 20,000
- Allied powers present: 338,226 men, 850 transports
- Axis powers present: 800,000 men
- Date: May 1940
- Location: Dunkirk, France
11. Battle of Anzio
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
- Total casualties: 83,000
- Allied casualties: 43,000
- Axis casualties: 40,000
- Allied powers present: 150,000 men
- Axis powers present: 135,000 men
- Date: January 1944
- Location: Anzio and Nettuno, Italy
10. Battle of Singapore
Source: George Trumpeter / Shutterstock.com
- Total casualties: 89,485
- Allied casualties: 85,000
- Axis casualties: 4,485
- Allied powers present: 85,000 men
- Axis powers present: 36,000 men
- Date: February 1942
- Location: Singapore
9. Battle of the Bulge
Source: Bettmann / Getty Images
- Total casualties: 158,100
- Allied casualties: 90,900
- Axis casualties: 67,200
- Allied powers present: 840,000 men, 1,300 tanks, 394 artillery
- Axis powers present: 500,000 men, 1,800 tanks, 1,900 artillery
- Date: December 1944
- Location: The Ardennes Forest (Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany)
8. Battle of Okinawa
Source: my_public_domain_photos / Flickr
- Total casualties: 167,000
- Allied casualties: 50,000
- Axis casualties: 117,000
- Allied powers present: 183,000 men, 1,300 ships (including 40 aircraft carriers, battleships, cruisers, destroyers and submarines), 12,000 aircraft
- Axis powers present: 120,000 men, 1,500 ships (including battleships, cruisers, destroyers and submarines), 2,000 aircraft
- Date: April 1945
- Location: Okinawa Island, Japan
7. Battle of Sicily
Source: Archive Holdings Inc. / The Image Bank via Getty Images
- Total casualties: 191,820
- Allied casualties: 24,820
- Axis casualties: 167,000
- Allied powers present: 467,000 men, 600 tanks, 14,000 vehicles
- Axis powers present: 290,000 men, 260 tanks, 1,400 aircraft
- Date: July 1943
- Location: Sicily, Italy
6. Battle of Greece
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
- Total casualties: 200,989
- Allied casualties: 93,389
- Axis casualties: 107,600
- Allied powers present: 692,612 men, 120 tanks, 200-300 aircraft
- Axis powers present: 1,245,000 men, 1363 tanks, 700 aircraft
- Date: April 1941
- Location: Greece
5. Battle of Normandy
Source: Keystone / Hulton Archive via Getty Images
- Total casualties: 409,000
- Allied casualties: 209,000
- Axis casualties: 200,000
- Allied powers present: 1,332,000 men
- Axis powers present: 380,000 men
- Date: June 1944
- Location: Normandy, France
4. Operation Overlord
Source: Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons
- Total casualties: 676,386
- Allied casualties: 226,386
- Axis casualties: 450,000
- Allied powers present: 2,052,299 men
- Axis powers present: 640,000 men
- Date: June 1944
- Location: Northern France
3. Battle of Berlin
Source: FPG / Archive Photos via Getty Images
- Total casualties: 1,161,367
- Allied casualties: 361,367
- Axis casualties: 800,000
- Allied powers present: 2,500,000 men, 6,250 tanks, 7,500 aircraft, 41,600 artillery
- Axis powers present: 766,750 men, 2,224 aircraft, 9,303 artillery
- Date: April 1945
- Location: Berlin, Germany
2. Battle of Stalingrad
Source: Archive Photos / Archive Photos via Getty Images
- Total casualties: 2,197,993
- Allied casualties: 1,129,619
- Axis casualties: 1,068,374
- Allied powers present: 1,143,000 men, 13,451 artillery pieces, 894 tanks, 1,115 aircraft
- Axis powers present: 600,000 men, 640 tanks, 732 aircraft
- Date: August 1942
- Location: Stalingrad, Soviet Union
1. Siege of Leningrad
Source: wwhyte / Flickr
- Total casualties: 3,936,066
- Allied casualties: 3,436,066
- Axis casualties: 500,000
- Allied powers present: 930,000 men in initial force
- Axis powers present: 725,000 men in initial force
- Date: September 1941
- Location: Leningrad, Soviet Union
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