Conflict-affected states often top the list when measuring military spending as a percentage of GDP. Nations facing active security threats or regional instability dedicate a larger share of their economies to defense than the global average of roughly 2.2%.
In absolute dollar terms, the picture is very different — the United States, China, and India dominate total military expenditure. The US alone spends more on defense than the next ten countries combined.
This ranking uses military expenditure as a percentage of GDP, sourced from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) and World Bank data.
| Rank | Country | Military (% of GDP) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 🇺🇦Ukraine | 36.5% |
| 2 | 🇩🇿Algeria | 7.4% |
| 3 | 🇸🇦Saudi Arabia | 7.3% |
| 4 | 🇶🇦Qatar | 6.5% |
| 5 | 🇴🇲Oman | 5.5% |
| 6 | 🇦🇲Armenia | 5.5% |
| 7 | 🇷🇺Russia | 5.4% |
| 8 | 🇮🇱Israel | 5.4% |
| 9 | 🇱🇾Libya | 5.3% |
| 10 | 🇦🇿Azerbaijan | 4.9% |
| 11 | 🇯🇴Jordan | 4.8% |
| 12 | 🇰🇼Kuwait | 4.8% |
| 13 | 🇧🇫Burkina Faso | 4.1% |
| 14 | 🇲🇱Mali | 3.8% |
| 15 | 🇲🇲Myanmar | 3.8% |
| 16 | 🇲🇦Morocco | 3.6% |
| 17 | 🇧🇭Bahrain | 3.5% |
| 18 | 🇰🇬Kyrgyzstan | 3.5% |
| 19 | 🇧🇮Burundi | 3.4% |
| 20 | 🇺🇸United States | 3.3% |
| 21 | 🇵🇱Poland | 3.3% |
| 22 | 🇹🇬Togo | 3.0% |
| 23 | 🇪🇪Estonia | 3.0% |
| 24 | 🇧🇳Brunei | 3.0% |
| 25 | 🇱🇻Latvia | 3.0% |
| 26 | 🇨🇴Colombia | 3.0% |
| 27 | 🇬🇷Greece | 2.9% |
| 28 | 🇵🇰Pakistan | 2.9% |
| 29 | 🇸🇬Singapore | 2.8% |
| 30 | 🇳🇦Namibia | 2.7% |
| 31 | 🇱🇹Lithuania | 2.7% |
| 32 | 🇹🇱Timor-Leste | 2.6% |
| 33 | 🇰🇷South Korea | 2.6% |
| 34 | 🇹🇳Tunisia | 2.5% |
| 35 | 🇧🇼Botswana | 2.5% |
| 36 | 🇹🇯Tajikistan | 2.4% |
| 37 | 🇨🇫Central African Republic | 2.4% |
| 38 | 🇮🇳India | 2.4% |
| 39 | 🇮🇷Iran | 2.4% |
| 40 | 🇪🇨Ecuador | 2.3% |
| 41 | 🇮🇶Iraq | 2.3% |
| 42 | 🇲🇷Mauritania | 2.3% |
| 43 | 🇬🇧United Kingdom | 2.2% |
| 44 | 🇷🇸Serbia | 2.2% |
| 45 | 🇬🇳Guinea | 2.1% |
| 46 | 🇹🇩Chad | 2.1% |
| 47 | 🇺🇾Uruguay | 2.1% |
| 48 | 🇸🇸South Sudan | 2.1% |
| 49 | 🇭🇺Hungary | 2.0% |
| 50 | 🇧🇾Belarus | 2.0% |
Can you guess which countries spend the most on defense? Try these geography games.