In 2025, there were around 137,000 regular personnel serving in the British Armed Forces, compared with 138,000 in the previous year. In the first half of the twentieth century, there were two huge spikes in the number of active personnel which represented the final years of World War One and World War Two, numbering 4.58 million and 4.69 million in 1918 and 1945 respectively. Ever since 1945, the size of the regular armed forces has been in almost constant decline, with the noticeable exception of the early 1950s, when the number of active personnel increased by almost 200,000 because of the Korean War. The winds of change There are several reasons why the number of personnel in Britain’s armed forces has declined. Britain is involved in a far fewer conventional military conflicts today than it was in the past. As the size of Britain’s empire declined rapidly after 1945, so too did the UK's global military commitments. There are also more recent developments, such as the UK government’s Strategic Defence and Security Review of 2010, which outlined personnel would be cut throughout the 2010s to modernize the UK’s armed forces. Recent geopolitical events such as the War in Ukraine have, however, led to commitments from the UK government to spend more on defence, and eventually even a reversal of personnel cuts. Branches of the UK military There are three main branches of the UK armed forces, the British Army, the Royal Navy, the Royal Air Force, and the Royal Marines. Of the 181,000 people serving in the UK’s armed forces in 2025, over half of them were in the British Army, which had around 109,000 personnel. The next largest branch was the Royal Navy at 37,900, followed by the RAF at 34,800 personnel. The average age for people serving in the armed forces was 31 in 2024, with the Royal Air Force having a slightly higher average age group than the other branches, at 33.

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.

Armed forces personnel, total in World was reported at 27406000 in 2020, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. World - Armed forces personnel, total - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on July of 2025.

In 2025, there were approximately ****** regular personnel in the British Armed Forces aged between 18 and 29, compared with ****** aged between 30 and 49, and ****** aged 50 and over.

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

Armed forces personnel (% of total labor force) in United States was reported at 0.83751 % in 2020, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. United States - Armed forces personnel - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on August of 2025.

Statistics on numbers of military personnel and veterans by region and district and details of the pension and compensation recipients.

A compendium listing all the revisions to strengths and flows for MPR between flow statistics form the period ending 31 March 2009 to the period ending 31 October 2011 and strength statistics from 1 May 2009 to 1 October 2011.

Source agency: Defence

Designation: National Statistics

Language: English

Alternative title: MPR

In 2025, there were approximately ******* men in the armed forces of the United Kingdom, and ****** women. The reduction in personnel witnessed by the British Armed Forces recently is the result of a conscious attempt by previous UK governments to cut costs and modernize the military. This policy was informed by the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review, which, among other things, sought to replace many full-time regulars with reservists, and to end the UK’s permanent deployment in Germany. Cuts across air land and sea While the army has born the brunt of these cuts to personnel, all branches of the armed forces have also had to contend with the same issue. While the share of GDP spent on defence has recently started to increase, over the long term, the UK has spent far less on defence since the end of the Cold War. In 2022/23, the UK spent *** percent of GDP on defence, slightly above the current minimum NATO requirement of *** percent of GDP. Recent geopolitical events, such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine, have led to renewed calls for increased defence spending, with the new NATO target of 3.5 percent agreed at the 2025 summit. Age of personnel In 2025, the average age across all ranks and branches in the UK armed forces was **. This was the average age for all branches of the armed forces, except for the RAF, which had an average age of **. During the same year, there were approximately ****** people aged between 18 and 29 in the armed forces, compared with ****** people aged between 30 and 49. In this year, the number of people aged 50 or over in the Armed Force was ******.

A compendium listing all the revisions to strengths and flows for QPR between flow statistics form the period ending 31 March 2009 to the period ending 31 October 2011 and strength statistics from 1 May 2009 to 1 October 2011.

Source agency: Defence

Designation: National Statistics

Language: English

Alternative title: UK Armed Forces Quarterly Personnel Statistics Revision Compendium

This is a monthly publication containing requirements, strengths, intake and outflow from the UK Armed Forces by Service. Voluntary Outflow information by Service is also shown.

Source agency: Defence

Designation: National Statistics

Language: English

Alternative title: UKAFMMS

Armed forces personnel (% of total labor force) in World was reported at 0.78923 % in 2020, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. World - Armed forces personnel - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on August of 2025.

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).

The Canadian Armed Forces Military Police (MP) maintains an activity tracking database known as the Security and Military Police Information System (SAMPIS). This is a collection of data representing the number of investigations commenced during a calendar year. This data in no way reflects criminal convictions; rather, it reflects the number of investigations that were initiated by the MP

Romania RO: Armed Forces Personnel: Total data was reported at 149,200.000 Person in 2016. This records a decrease from the previous number of 150,400.000 Person for 2015. Romania RO: Armed Forces Personnel: Total data is updated yearly, averaging 177,000.000 Person from Dec 1985 (Median) to 2016, with 29 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 307,500.000 Person in 1996 and a record low of 126,000.000 Person in 1990. Romania RO: Armed Forces Personnel: Total data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s Romania – Table RO.World Bank.WDI: Defense and Official Development Assistance. Armed forces personnel are active duty military personnel, including paramilitary forces if the training, organization, equipment, and control suggest they may be used to support or replace regular military forces.; ; International Institute for Strategic Studies, The Military Balance.; Sum; Data for some countries are based on partial or uncertain data or rough estimates.

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.

Statistics on numbers of military personnel and veterans

Syria: Armed forces personnel: The latest value from 2020 is 269000 people, unchanged from 269000 people in 2019. In comparison, the world average is 162240 people, based on data from 167 countries. Historically, the average for Syria from 1985 to 2020 is 365948 people. The minimum value, 178000 people, was reached in 2011 while the maximum of 531000 people was recorded in 1995.