Military Size by Country 2022

The military is a country’s most valuable asset. The government employs the military to execute the country’s internal and international policies and safeguard its population. Every citizen in certain countries must serve in the military for a minimum time.




Military power evaluation factors to consider:

The strength of a nation’s military is influenced by a wide range of variables, some of which are more important than others. Equipment (vehicles, weapons, communications gear, etc.) is critical regarding functionality and availability. Quality of training is essential for soldiers to succeed.

Their commanders’ capacity to continuously develop good tactical plans is critical. However, the number of troops a nation can field is one of the most basic indicators of its military might.

Some readers may be surprised by the list of nations with the largest overall number of military personnel (active duty, reserves, and paramilitary). However, it’s important to remember that military personnel is often classified into active-duty, reserve, and paramilitary personnel.

  • Members of the military who are on active duty, which means they are employed by the military full-time and may be deployed at any moment.
  • Members of the National Guard or Army Reserve may earn a tuition bonus at their college or institution or take advantage of other benefits without giving their entire time to the military as reservists.
  • Paramilitary personnel — Members of groups like Canada’s Canadian Rangers and France’s National Gendarmerie, military-like but not technically part of the armed forces, are considered paramilitary members.




Military Size by Country 2022

These are the 10 countries having the most military personnel:




RankCountryTotal PersonnelTotal (Per 1000 Capita)Active (Per 1000 Capita)
1Vietnam10,522,000108.45
2North Korea7,769,000306.150.4
3South Korea6,712,500130.511.6
4India5,137,50041.1
5China4,015,0002.91.6
6Russia3,568,00025.17.1
7United States2,133,0506.54.2
8Brazil2,101,50010.11.8
9Taiwan1,831,80077.86.9
10Pakistan1,495,0007.23.1

With 306.1 total members & 50.4 active members per capita, North Korea leads the list of countries with the most military personnel. In contrast, South Korea has 130.5 total active members per capita, and Eritrea has 33.8 active members per capita.

In reality, the vast majority of troops in Vietnam, North Korea, & South Korea are reserves or paramilitary, not on active duty. Only eight countries have active military forces of more than 500,000 soldiers:




The following are the 10 countries with the greatest number of military personnel on active duty:

  1. China: 2,185,000
  2. India: 1,455,550
  3. United States: 1,388,100
  4. North Korea: 1,280,000
  5. Russia: 1,014,000
  6. Pakistan: 654,000
  7. Iran: 610,000
  8. South Korea: 599,000
  9. Vietnam: 482,000
  10. Egypt: 438,500

That the three most populous nations have the three greatest standing militaries is notable and in the same order. The United States is in third place, followed by India and China.

In terms of the total population, active military personnel, and overall military might, the United States ranks third, but it also spends more per capita than any other nation.

With the inclusion of its reserve forces, Vietnam’s military now has the biggest standing army in the world, totaling almost 5 million soldiers. A military reserve force of 3.1 million people also exists in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.




Military Size by Country 2022

The following are the 10 countries with the greatest number of military personnel on active duty or in the reserves:

  1. Vietnam: 5,482,000
  2. South Korea: 3,699,000
  3. China: 3,355,000
  4. Russian Federation: 3,014,000
  5. India: 2,610,550
  6. United States: 2,233,050
  7. North Korea: 1,880,000
  8. Taiwan: 1,820,000
  9. Brazil: 1,706,500
  10. Pakistan: 1,204,000

When just considering a country’s paramilitary forces, the rankings are reshuffled. With more than 5.889 million paramilitary members, North Korea is the country with the most paramilitary personnel.




Since paramilitary groups in the United States are not included in the military (though some, such as the Civil Air Patrol, are designated auxiliary), the country’s paramilitary has a 0 member official count.

Also See: Largest Navies in the World 2022

The following are the 10 countries with the greatest concentration of paramilitaries:

  1. North Korea: 5,889,000
  2. Vietnam: 5,000,000
  3. South Korea: 3,013,500
  4. India: 2,526,950
  5. Cuba: 1,146,500
  6. China: 660,000
  7. Russia: 554,000
  8. Egypt: 397,000
  9. Brazil: 395,000
  10. Pakistan: 291,000

Some countries do not have any active military personnel, and others have a very limited military presence.

Costa Rica, Iceland, Libya, Marutius, Palestine, & Panama have no active military personnel. Please check the following table for a complete list of nations and the number of military personnel in each.




CountryActive DutyParamilitaryReservesTotal Personnel2022 Population
China2185000660000117000040150001448471.4000
India14555502526950115500051375001406631.7760
United States138810008449502233050334805.2690
North Korea12800005889000600000776900025990.6790
Russia101400055400020000003568000145805.9470
Pakistan6540002910005500001495000229488.9940
Iran61000040000350000100000086022.8370
South Korea59900030135003100000671250051329.8990
Vietnam482000504000050000001052200098953.5410
Egypt4385003970004790001314500106156.6920
Myanmar406000107000051300055227.1430
Indonesia3955002800004000001075500279134.5050
Brazil36650039500013400002101500215353.5930
Thailand36085013870020000069955070078.2030
Turkey35520015680037870089070085561.9760
Colombia2932001879003495051605051512.7620
Sri Lanka25500092600550035310021575.8420
Japan2471501435056000317500125584.8380
Saudi Arabia22700024500025150035844.9090
Mexico21600011190081500409400131562.7720
Ukraine209000102000900000121100043192.1220
France2032501308004105037510065584.5180
Eritrea20175001200003217503662.2440
Morocco1958005000015000039580037772.7560
Iraq193000148000034100042164.9650
South Sudan1850000018500011618.5110
Germany18350003005021355083883.5960
Afghanistan17880099000027780040754.3880
Israel16950080004650006425008922.8920
Syria169000100000026900019364.8090
Italy1655001757501830035955060262.7700
Bangladesh163050639000226950167885.6890
Taiwan163000118001657000183180023888.5950
United Kingdom14850007860022710068497.9070
Philippines14310062300131000336400112508.9940
Nigeria143000800000223000216746.9340
Greece142700400022135036805010316.6370
Ethiopia13800000138000120812.6980
DR Congo1342500013425095240.7920
Algeria13000018720015000046720045350.1480
Azerbaijan1269501500033000047195010300.2050
Cambodia12430067000019130017168.6390
Venezuela123000220000800035100029266.9910
Spain120350758001515021130046719.1420
Poland11405075400018945037739.7850
Malaysia1130002672005160043180033181.0720
Angola10700010000011700035027.3430
Sudan104300105000020930045992.0200
Jordan100500150006500018050010300.8690
Nepal9660015000011160030225.5820
Peru810007700018800034600033684.2080
Chile77200447004000016190019250.1950
Argentina7210031250010335046010.2340
Romania69300570005000017630019031.3350
Canada6740045003560010750038388.4190
South Africa653500150508040060756.1350
United Arab Emirates63000006300010081.7850
Lebanon60000200000800006684.8490
Australia586000301008870026068.7920
Dominican Republic560501500007105011056.3700
Singapore5100074002525003109005943.5460
Cuba49000114650039000123450011305.6520
Uzbekistan480002000006800034382.0840
Belarus453501100002895004448509432.8000
Uganda450001400100005640048432.8630
Armenia4480043002100002591002971.9660
Oman4260044000470005323.9930
Ecuador4025050011800015875018113.3610
Yemen40000004000031154.8670
Kazakhstan390003150007050019205.0430
Bulgaria3695003000399506844.5970
Turkmenistan3650050000415006201.9430
Tunisia358001200004780012046.6560
Netherlands35400590045004580017211.4470
Bolivia341003710007120011992.6560
Chad332501190004515017413.5800
Rwanda33000200003500013600.4640
Burundi300502100005105012624.8400
Sweden297502120005095010218.9710
Laos2910010000001291007481.0230
Zimbabwe290002180005080015331.4280
Serbia28150370050150820008653.0160
Hungary278001200020000598009606.2590
Ivory Coast27400002740027742.2980
Portugal272502470021170026365010140.5700
Tanzania2700014008000010840063298.5500
Belgium26300051003140011668.2780
Cameroon25400900003440027911.5480
El Salvador24500170009900514006550.3890
Kenya24100500002910056215.2210
Finland23800142002160002540005554.9600
Norway23250040000632505511.3700
Austria2205001256001476509066.7100
Czech Republic21750002175010736.7840
Uruguay2100014000224003496.0160
Georgia2065054000260503968.7380
Lithuania19850144006700409502661.7080
Somalia19800001980016841.7950
Switzerland1955001964502160008773.6370
Guatemala18050250006385010690018584.0390
Kuwait17500710023700483004380.3260
Qatar1650050000215002979.9150
Mauritania1585050000208504901.9810
Slovakia1585000158505460.1930
Ghana15500001550032395.4500
Croatia15200300018350365504059.2860
Zambia15100140030001950019470.2340
Cyprus1500075050000657501223.3870
Honduras149508000600008295010221.2470
Denmark14500044000585005834.9500
Paraguay13950148001645001932507305.8430
Senegal13600500001860017653.6710
Madagascar13500810002160029178.0770
Mali13000780002080021473.7640
Nicaragua1200000120006779.1000
Burkina Faso1120025001145022102.8380
Mozambique11200001120033089.4610
Kyrgyzstan1090095000204006728.2710
Malawi10700420001490020180.8390
Bosnia and Herzegovina1050000105003249.3170
Djibouti1045026500131001016.0970
Republic of the Congo1000020000120005797.8050
Namibia990060000159002633.8740
Mongolia970075001370001542003378.0780
Guinea9700260001230013865.6910
Ireland950004050135505020.1990
Central African Republic915010000101505016.6780
New Zealand900002300113004898.2030
Botswana90000090002441.1620
Tajikistan880075000163009957.4640
Togo8550750093008680.8370
Sierra Leone85000085008306.4360
Bahrain8200112600194601783.9830
North Macedonia800076004850204502081.3040
Albania80000080002866.3740
Slovenia725059501500147002078.0340
Benin7250480001205012784.7260
Brunei72004507008350445.4310
Estonia7100017500246001321.9100
Latvia6210015900221101848.8370
Niger5300540001070026083.6600
Moldova515090058000640504013.1710
Gabon47002000067002331.5330
Guinea-Bissau44500044502063.3670
Trinidad and Tobago40500040501406.5850
Jamaica3950098049302985.0940
Papua New Guinea36000036009292.1690
Fiji3500060009500909.4660
Guyana340006704070794.0450
Montenegro235010100012450627.9500
Liberia20100020105305.1170
Lesotho20000020002175.6990
Malta195001802130444.0330
Suriname1840001840596.8310
Belize15001507002350412.1900
Equatorial Guinea14500014501496.6620
Bahamas1300001300400.5160
Cape Verde1200001200567.6780
Luxembourg90060001500642.3710
Gambia800008002558.4820
Barbados61004301040288.0230
Seychelles4200042099.4260
Antigua and Barbuda18008026099.5090
Haiti15050020011680.2830
Panama0260000260004446.9640
Costa Rica09800098005182.3540
Mauritius02550025501274.7270
Iceland02500250345.3930




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