In April 2024, 13.1% of people in non-officer roles in the armed forces were from ethnic minorities, compared with 7.9% in April 2012.

In the United States, active duty Armed Forces personnel tended to be young, with the majority under the age of 30 years old. In 2023, there were 546,361 U.S. Defense Armed personnel aged 25 and under. In the age group 26 to 30, there were 275,756 Armed Forces personnel.

In the fiscal year of 2019, 21.39 percent of active-duty enlisted women were of Hispanic origin. The total number of active duty military personnel in 2019 amounted to 1.3 million people.

Ethnicities in the United States The United States is known around the world for the diversity of its population. The Census recognizes six different racial and ethnic categories: White American, Native American and Alaska Native, Asian American, Black or African American, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander. People of Hispanic or Latino origin are classified as a racially diverse ethnicity.

The largest part of the population, about 61.3 percent, is composed of White Americans. The largest minority in the country are Hispanics with a share of 17.8 percent of the population, followed by Black or African Americans with 13.3 percent. Life in the U.S. and ethnicity However, life in the United States seems to be rather different depending on the race or ethnicity that you belong to. For instance: In 2019, native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders had the highest birth rate of 58 per 1,000 women, while the birth rae of white alone, non Hispanic women was 49 children per 1,000 women.

The Black population living in the United States has the highest poverty rate with of all Census races and ethnicities in the United States. About 19.5 percent of the Black population was living with an income lower than the 2020 poverty threshold. The Asian population has the smallest poverty rate in the United States, with about 8.1 percent living in poverty.

The median annual family income in the United States in 2020 earned by Black families was about 57,476 U.S. dollars, while the average family income earned by the Asian population was about 109,448 U.S. dollars. This is more than 25,000 U.S. dollars higher than the U.S. average family income, which was 84,008 U.S. dollars.

This dataset contains demographic information on every member of the US armed forces including gender, race, and rank.

Acknowlegement

Original Data

Foto von israel palacio auf Unsplash

Graph and download economic data for Total Population: All Ages including Armed Forces Overseas (POP) from Jan 1952 to Dec 2025 about population and USA.

The U.S. Army remains the largest branch of the American military, with 449,344 active duty personnel in 2023. While the Army leads in numbers, the newly established Space Force had just 8,879 active duty members, highlighting the evolving nature of modern warfare and the increasing importance of space-based capabilities. Confidence in military remains high Despite fluctuations in force size, public trust in the U.S. military remains strong. In 2024, 61 percent of Americans expressed a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in the armed forces, a slight increase from the previous year. While a slightly higher share of Republicans have shown more confidence in the military, trust in the institution remains high across party lines. Global commitments The United States continues to invest heavily in its military capabilities, with defense spending reaching 916.02 billion U.S. dollars in 2023. This substantial budget supports not only domestic defense needs but also enables the U.S. to respond to global crises, as evidenced by the over 40 billion euros in military aid provided to Ukraine following Russia's invasion. The high level of spending, which translates to about 2,220 U.S. dollars per capita.

Throughout the 19th century, the share of military personnel employed by the United States government was below 0.2 percent of the total population in most years. There were noticeable spikes in enlistments and conscriptions during the American Civil War (1861-65), the First World War (1917-18*), and Second World War (1941-45*), as well as smaller increases during the Mexican-American War (1946-48) and the Spanish-American War (1898), but figures were generally much lower than the post-WWII era.

Following the Second World War, the United States abandoned many of its isolationist positions as it sought to become the world's leading superpower. This involved stationing millions of troops in overseas bases during the Cold War, in strategically important locations such as West Germany, Japan, and Taiwan. Additionally, involvement in conflicts such as the Korean War (1950-1953) and Vietnam War (1964-1973*) kept military employment high, usually between 1-2 percent until the 1970s. Figures remained just below the one percent mark until the 1990s, when the end of the Cold War and the growing influence of technology in conventional warfare saw a decrease in demand for many traditional combat roles. Despite U.S. involvement in a number of overseas conflicts in the 21st century, military personnel represented less than 0.5 percent of the total population in most years between 2000 and 2016.

United States - Total Population: All Ages including Armed Forces Overseas was 343157.45000 Thous. in December of 2025, according to the United States Federal Reserve. Historically, United States - Total Population: All Ages including Armed Forces Overseas reached a record high of 343157.45000 in December of 2025 and a record low of 156309.00000 in January of 1952. Trading Economics provides the current actual value, an historical data chart and related indicators for United States - Total Population: All Ages including Armed Forces Overseas - last updated from the United States Federal Reserve on December of 2025.

The graph illustrates the number of personnel in each branch of the U.S. Military for the year 2025. The x-axis lists the military branches: Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard. The y-axis represents the number of personnel, ranging from 41,689 to 452,823. Among the branches, the Army has the highest number of personnel with 452,823, followed by the Navy with 337,209 and the Air Force with 321,211. The Marine Corps and Coast Guard have 170,201 and 41,689 personnel, respectively. The data is displayed in a bar graph format, effectively highlighting the distribution of military personnel across the different branches.

• = p < 0.05** = p < 0.01Prevalence (% ± SE) of reported use of number and type dietary supplements (DS) at least once per week or more often over the six months prior to the survey by demographic and lifestyle characteristics among Active Duty U.S. Coast Guard Personnel1.

This scatter chart displays population (people) against armed forces personnel (people) in the Americas. The data is about regions.

In 2023, there were around 1.11 million active duty U.S. Armed Forces personnel stationed within the United States. In that year, there were 156,418 U.S. Armed Forces personnel stationed in California, the most of any state.

This scatter chart displays armed forces personnel (people) against male population (people) in Africa. The data is about countries.

Percentage representation of Employment Equity (EE) Designated Group Members (DGM) in the Canadian Armed Forces(CAF). Data is grouped by CAF component and Rank Category (Officer or Non-commissioned Member) as well as by Designated Environmental Percentage representation of Employment Equity (EE) Designated Group Members (DGM) in the Canadian Armed Forces(CAF). Data is grouped by CAF component and Rank Category (Officer or Non-commissioned Member) as well as by Designated Environmental Uniform (DEU). These DEUs are Sea (Royal Canadian Navy), Land (Canadian Army) and Air (Royal Canadian Air Force).

This scatter chart displays armed forces personnel (people) against female population (people). The data is about countries.

Data for feasibility research on producing statistics of the UK armed forces veteran population in England and Wales, using administrative data and Census 2021.

Monthly Intercensal Estimates of the Resident plus Armed Forces Overseas Population by Single Year of Age and Sex: April 1, 1990 to April 1, 2000 // Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division // For detailed information about the methods used to create the intercensal population estimates, see https://www.census.gov/popest/methodology/intercensal_nat_meth.pdf. // The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program produces intercensal estimates each decade by adjusting the existing time series of postcensal estimates for a decade to smooth the transition from one decennial census count to the next. They differ from the postcensal estimates that are released annually because they rely on a formula that redistributes the difference between the April 1 postcensal estimate and April 1 census count for the end of the decade across the estimates for that decade. Meanwhile, the postcensal estimates incorporate current data on births, deaths, and migration to produce each new vintage of estimates, and to revise estimates for years back to the last census. The Population Estimates Program provides additional information including historical and postcensal estimates, evaluation estimates, demographic analysis, and research papers on its website: https://www.census.gov/popest/index.html.

This dataset is about countries per year in Georgia. It has 64 rows. It features 4 columns: country, armed forces personnel, and population.

United States Population Est Prog: Population: Resident & Armed Forces Overseas data was reported at 329,130.000 Person th in Nov 2018. This records an increase from the previous number of 328,927.000 Person th for Oct 2018. United States Population Est Prog: Population: Resident & Armed Forces Overseas data is updated monthly, averaging 238,270.000 Person th from Jan 1952 (Median) to Nov 2018, with 803 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 329,130.000 Person th in Nov 2018 and a record low of 156,309.000 Person th in Jan 1952. United States Population Est Prog: Population: Resident & Armed Forces Overseas data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by US Census Bureau. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.G001: Population.