This Country Has the Biggest Reserve Army, See Where the US Ranks

Special Report

Published: March 21, 2024 1:50 pm

At the onset of the war in Afghanistan in the early 2000s, the United States mobilized thousands of reservists to complement its active duty military personnel when entering the region. This practice is not uncommon when countries are preparing to go to war. In fact, Russia is relying on its reserve personnel in its current ongoing conflict in Ukraine. (These are the greatest armies ever assembled on Earth.)

Many countries around the world rely on their reservists should a conflict erupt and military personnel are needed. These members of the military, although not active duty, make up a key component of any military force.

To identify the countries with the most military reserve personnel, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed 2024 Military Strength Ranking from Global Firepower, an annually updated defense-related statistics website with information on 145 countries. Countries were ranked on the total number of military reserves. We included supplemental information regarding active personnel, total population, fit-for-service, paramilitary forces, and overall military strength score.

Eight countries in the world are known to have reserve forces with more than 1 million at the ready, led by Vietnam’s estimated 5 million reservists, followed by the likes of Taiwan, Ukraine, and South Korea.

It is not surprising to find countries with large populations on this list. However, the number of reservists does not necessarily depend on the size of the population. Countries with relatively small populations, like Israel and Finland, have outsized reserves comparatively speaking. (These are the NATO members with the most military manpower.)

Outside of active troops and reservists, countries also have a third broad category of military personnel: paramilitary organizations, state-sanctioned forces that have sometimes acted outside the rules of engagement.

Here is a look at the countries with the most military reserve personnel:

30. Paraguay

Reserves: 168,500
Total military personnel: 199,150
Active personnel: 15,650
Paramilitary forces: 15,000
Total population: 7,439,863
Fit-for-service: 2,968,505
Military strength score: 1.7053 – #85 out of 145

29. Thailand

Reserves: 200,000
Total military personnel: 585,850
Active personnel: 360,850
Paramilitary forces: 25,000
Total population: 69,794,997
Fit-for-service: 27,917,999
Military strength score: 0.3389 – #25 out of 145

28. Armenia

Reserves: 210,000
Total military personnel: 272,500
Active personnel: 57,500
Paramilitary forces: 5,000
Total population: 2,989,091
Fit-for-service: 1,371,993
Military strength score: 2.0583 – #102 out of 145

27. Portugal

Reserves: 211,700
Total military personnel: 260,400
Active personnel: 24,000
Paramilitary forces: 24,700
Total population: 10,467,366
Fit-for-service: 4,029,936
Military strength score: 0.5609 – #38 out of 145

26. Greece

Reserves: 221,350
Total military personnel: 419,050
Active personnel: 142,700
Paramilitary forces: 55,000
Total population: 10,497,595
Fit-for-service: 3,999,584
Military strength score: 0.4349 – #32 out of 145

25. Singapore

Singapore+submarine | Sailors observe as the ship passes the Seawolf-Class attack submarine USS Connecticut.

Reserves: 252,500
Total military personnel: 315,500
Active personnel: 51,000
Paramilitary forces: 12,000
Total population: 5,975,383
Fit-for-service: 2,605,267
Military strength score: 0.4087 – #30 out of 145

24. Azerbaijan

Reserves: 300,000
Total military personnel: 441,400
Active personnel: 126,400
Paramilitary forces: 15,000
Total population: 10,420,515
Fit-for-service: 3,824,329
Military strength score: 0.9934 – #59 out of 145

23. Kyrgyzstan

Reserves: 300,000
Total military personnel: 378,000
Active personnel: 23,000
Paramilitary forces: 55,000
Total population: 6,122,781
Fit-for-service: 2,467,481
Military strength score: 2.0057 – #100 out of 145

22. Brazil

Reserves: 340,000
Total military personnel: 900,000
Active personnel: 360,000
Paramilitary forces: 200,000
Total population: 218,689,757
Fit-for-service: 88,131,972
Military strength score: 0.1944 – #12 out of 145

21. Iran

Reserves: 350,000
Total military personnel: 1,180,000
Active personnel: 610,000
Paramilitary forces: 220,000
Total population: 87,590,873
Fit-for-service: 41,167,710
Military strength score: 0.2269 – #14 out of 145

20. Poland

Reserves: 350,000
Total military personnel: 602,100
Active personnel: 202,100
Paramilitary forces: 50,000
Total population: 37,991,766
Fit-for-service: 15,272,690
Military strength score: 0.2917 – #21 out of 145

19. Turkey

Reserves: 378,700
Total military personnel: 883,900
Active personnel: 355,200
Paramilitary forces: 150,000
Total population: 83,593,483
Fit-for-service: 3,561,604
Military strength score: 0.1697 – #8 out of 145

18. Peru

Reserves: 385,000
Total military personnel: 565,000
Active personnel: 120,000
Paramilitary forces: 60,000
Total population: 32,440,172
Fit-for-service: 12,619,227
Military strength score: 0.8475 – #53 out of 145

17. Indonesia

Reserves: 400,000
Total military personnel: 1,050,000
Active personnel: 400,000
Paramilitary forces: 250,000
Total population: 279,476,346
Fit-for-service: 113,746,873
Military strength score: 0.2251 – #13 out of 145

16. Israel

Reserves: 465,000
Total military personnel: 670,000
Active personnel: 170,000
Paramilitary forces: 35,000
Total population: 9,043,387
Fit-for-service: 3,156,142
Military strength score: 0.2596 – #17 out of 145

15. Egypt

Reserves: 480,000
Total military personnel: 1,220,000
Active personnel: 440,000
Paramilitary forces: 300,000
Total population: 109,546,720
Fit-for-service: 37,684,072
Military strength score: 0.2283 – #15 out of 145

14. China

Reserves: 510,000
Total military personnel: 3,170,000
Active personnel: 2,035,000
Paramilitary forces: 625,000
Total population: 1,413,142,846
Fit-for-service: 626,022,281
Military strength score: 0.0706 – #3 out of 145

13. Pakistan

Reserves: 550,000
Total military personnel: 1,704,000
Active personnel: 654,000
Paramilitary forces: 500,000
Total population: 247,653,551
Fit-for-service: 84,202,207
Military strength score: 0.1711 – #9 out of 145

12. North Korea

Reserves: 560,000
Total military personnel: 1,980,000
Active personnel: 1,320,000
Paramilitary forces: 100,000
Total population: 26,072,217
Fit-for-service: 5,266,588
Military strength score: 0.5313 – #36 out of 145

11. Tajikistan

Reserves: 600,000
Total military personnel: 629,500
Active personnel: 9,500
Paramilitary forces: 20,000
Total population: 9,245,937
Fit-for-service: 3,356,275
Military strength score: 2.1265 – #107 out of 145

10. United States

Reserves: 799,500
Total military personnel: 2,127,500
Active personnel: 1,328,000
Paramilitary forces: 0
Total population: 339,665,118
Fit-for-service: 123,977,768
Military strength score: 0.0699 – #1 out of 145

9. Finland

Reserves: 870,000
Total military personnel: 947,800
Active personnel: 24,000
Paramilitary forces: 53,800
Total population: 5,614,571
Fit-for-service: 1,908,954
Military strength score: 0.7967 – #50 out of 145

8. United Kingdom

Reserves: 924,000
Total military personnel: 1,108,860
Active personnel: 184,860
Paramilitary forces: 0
Total population: 68,138,484
Fit-for-service: 25,074,962
Military strength score: 0.1443 – #6 out of 145

7. India

Reserves: 1,155,000
Total military personnel: 5,137,550
Active personnel: 1,455,550
Paramilitary forces: 2,527,000
Total population: 1,399,179,585
Fit-for-service: 519,095,626
Military strength score: 0.1023 – #4 out of 145

6. Philippines

Reserves: 1,200,000
Total military personnel: 1,385,000
Active personnel: 150,000
Paramilitary forces: 35,000
Total population: 116,434,200
Fit-for-service: 41,101,273
Military strength score: 0.4691 – #34 out of 145

5. Ukraine

Reserves: 1,200,000
Total military personnel: 2,200,000
Active personnel: 900,000
Paramilitary forces: 100,000
Total population: 43,306,477
Fit-for-service: 15,460,412
Military strength score: 0.2598 – #18 out of 145

4. Russia

Reserves: 2,000,000
Total military personnel: 3,570,000
Active personnel: 1,320,000
Paramilitary forces: 250,000
Total population: 141,698,923
Fit-for-service: 46,477,247
Military strength score: 0.0702 – #2 out of 145

3. Taiwan

Reserves: 2,310,000
Total military personnel: 2,580,000
Active personnel: 215,000
Paramilitary forces: 55,000
Total population: 23,588,613
Fit-for-service: 1,061,488
Military strength score: 0.3302 – #24 out of 145

2. South Korea

Reserves: 3,100,000
Total military personnel: 3,820,000
Active personnel: 600,000
Paramilitary forces: 120,000
Total population: 51,966,948
Fit-for-service: 21,306,449
Military strength score: 0.1416 – #5 out of 145

1. Vietnam

Reserves: 5,000,000
Total military personnel: 5,850,000
Active personnel: 600,000
Paramilitary forces: 250,000
Total population: 104,799,174
Fit-for-service: 44,644,448
Military strength score: 0.3158 – #22 out of 145

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