As a share of gross domestic product (GDP), Ukraine spent more on its military than any other country in 2024, reaching 35 percent of the country's GDP. The high figure is due to the country being invaded by Russia in February 2022. Israel, that is fighting Hamas in the Gaza war, and Algeria followed behind.Leading military spending countriesIn gross terms, the countries with the highest military spending are the United States, China, and Russia. However, these are countries with large populations and GDPs, and smaller countries usually cannot compete alone, regardless of how much they invest. For this reason, they form alliances such as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). NATO countries aim to pool two percent of their GDP towards their own militaries and to aid each other in case of war. Regional differencesThe past decade has seen an increase in global military spending. This has not been distributed evenly. That period saw large positive changes in military spending from several Asian countries, including a large increase from China. While this does not reflect the number of active conflicts, it reflects growing tensions in global affairs.

The average for 2022 based on 145 countries was 1.98 percent. The highest value was in Ukraine: 33.55 percent and the lowest value was in Haiti: 0.07 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2022. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Military expenditure (% of GDP) in United States was reported at 3.3618 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. United States - Military expenditure (% of GDP) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on September of 2025.

The statistic represents the U.S. defense outlays from 2000 to 2023 with an additional forecast from 2024 to 2034, as a percentage of the gross domestic product. Defense outlays amounted to 746 billion U.S. dollars in 2022, which was about three percent of the U.S. GDP. The forecast predicts an increase in defense outlays up to 1.1 trillion U.S. dollars by 2033, which would be about 2.8 percent of U.S. GDP.

Israel's military expenditure as a share of GDP reached 8.8 percent in 2024, marking a significant increase from previous years. The surge in defense spending reflects the country's response to the Israel-Hamas conflict, which began in Gaza in October 2023, and expanded to hostilities in Lebanon, Yemen and Iran by 2025. The financial impact of the war was also apparent in the county's national debt figures, which rapidly increased by 20 percent between the third quarter of 2023 and the third quarter of 2024. Escalating defense budget amid conflict Israel's military allocation for 2025 has seen a significant increase, nearly doubling compared to 2022. Still, actual defense spending during the year is expected to exceed the approved 109.8 billion Israeli shekels, approximately 31.6 billion U.S. dollars, reflecting the nation's intensified emphasis on military preparedness amidst escalating geopolitical tensions. The bulk of this budget is earmarked for procurement and purchases, totaling around 55 billion Israeli shekels, equivalent to 15.7 billion U.S. dollars. Record-breaking arms exports As Israel ramped up its military spending, the country's defense industries have also reached new heights. In 2024, the value of arms exported from Israel reach 14.8 billion U.S. dollars, marking the third consecutive annual record. Air defense systems were the most popular product category that year, accounting for nearly half of all defense exports. The industry’s robust performance highlights the growing global demand for arms, and Israeli military hardware in particular.

In 2024/25, the United Kingdom's defence spending as a share of Gross Domestic Product is estimated to be 2.2 percent. During this time period, the UK's defence spending was at its highest in 1955/56 when 7.6 percent of the UK's GDP was spent on the military. Defence spending has fallen considerably throughout this period, especially after 1984/85, and then at a much faster pace after the end of the Cold War in 1991. It is estimated that defence spending as a share of GDP fell to its lowest level between 2016/17 and 2018/19 when it was just 1.8 percent. Armed forces fall to record lows in 2024 Since the early 1950s, there has been a consistent reduction in the size of the UK's armed forces. The importance of Britain maintaining a large standing army declined following the collapse of the British Empire by the late 1970s, and the end of the Cold War around a decade later. At the start of the 1990s, there were approximately 300,000 personnel in the armed forces, with this falling to 200,000 by 2005. Following a further strategic review of the army's capabilities in 2010, additional cuts to personnel were implemented, with cuts of approximately 50,000 throughout the 2010s. As of 2024, there were 75,320 personnel in the Army, 30,800 in the Royal Air Force, and 32,000 in the Royal Navy and Marines, a total of 138,120 active personnel. The UK and NATO The UK is one of the twelve founding members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), a military alliance formed in 1949. NATO's initial purpose was to defend Western Europe against the Soviet Union, with its role evolving to include peacekeeping and counter-terrorism after the end of the Cold War. As of 2025, the alliance includes 32 nations, with just two of these (Canada and the United States) outside of Europe. The United States is by far the largest military power in the alliance, dominating in terms of manpower, equipment, and military spending. Donald Trump's return to the White House in 2025, who has been skeptical of NATO, may prove difficult for the alliance should he distance the U.S. from Europe's security challenges.

Graph and download economic data for Shares of gross domestic product: Government consumption expenditures and gross investment: Federal: National defense (A824RE1Q156NBEA) from Q1 1947 to Q2 2025 about Shares of GDP, defense, investment, gross, consumption expenditures, federal, consumption, government, GDP, and USA.

In 2020, Poland allocated **** percent of its GDP to financing the armed forces, exceeding the goal recommended by NATO for defense spending for each member state (* percent of GDP). Defense spending is planned to increase gradually to *** percent in 2025.

Military expenditure (% of GDP) in Japan was reported at 1.1961 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Japan - Military expenditure (% of GDP) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on August of 2025.

Georgia: Military spending, percent of GDP: The latest value from 2022 is 1.43 percent, a decline from 1.61 percent in 2021. In comparison, the world average is 1.98 percent, based on data from 145 countries. Historically, the average for Georgia from 1996 to 2022 is 2.65 percent. The minimum value, 0.62 percent, was reached in 2000 while the maximum of 9.16 percent was recorded in 2007.

The United States led the ranking of the countries with the highest military spending in 2024, with 997 billion U.S. dollars dedicated to the military. That constituted almost 40 percent of the total military spending worldwide that year, which amounted to 2.7 trillion U.S. dollars. This amounted to 3.4 percent of the U.S.'s gross domestic product (GDP), placing the country lower in the ranking of military expenditure as a percentage of GDP, compared to Ukraine, Israel, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, and Russia. China was the second largest military spender, with an estimated 314 billion U.S. dollars spent, with Russia following in third. Defense budgetAccording to the U.S. Congressional Budget Office, the outlays for defense will rise to 1.1 trillion U.S. dollars by 2033. The largest parts of the budget are dedicated to the Departments of the Navy and the Air Force. The budget for the U.S. Air Force for 2024 was nearly 260 billion U.S. dollars.Global military spendingThe value of military spending globally has grown steadily in the past years and reached 2.7 trillion U.S. dollars in 2024. Reasons for this are the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022, the war in Gaza, as well as increasing tensions in the South China Sea. North America is by far the leading region worldwide in terms of expenditure on the military.

Syria: Military spending, percent of GDP: The latest value from 2010 is 4.06 percent, an increase from 4.03 percent in 2009. In comparison, the world average is 1.86 percent, based on data from 144 countries. Historically, the average for Syria from 1960 to 2010 is 9.73 percent. The minimum value, 3.55 percent, was reached in 2008 while the maximum of 17.69 percent was recorded in 1984.

Military expenditure (% of GDP) in Belgium was reported at 1.2146 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Belgium - Military expenditure (% of GDP) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on September of 2025.

The average for 2022 based on 40 countries was 2.4 percent. The highest value was in Ukraine: 33.55 percent and the lowest value was in Ireland: 0.23 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2022. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

In 2025, Poland's defense spending as a share of gross domestic product was **** percent, the highest of all NATO member states, followed by Lithuania at *****percent, and then Latvia at **** percent. It is a target of NATO that every member country should spend at least two percent of their GDP on defense. As of this year, it is estimated that all the alliance's 32 member states would meet this target. The average expenditure on defense expenditure across all NATO member states was **** percent in this year. NATO, Trump, and the War in Ukraine Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 shook many European powers out of a creeping complacency that had set in since the end of the Cold War. It led directly to the applications of Sweden and Finland to the alliance in 2022, with the latter joining later that year. The conflict has however also underlined how Europe's security is still underpinned by American military power, with the United States the main contributor of military aid to Ukraine. Furthermore, in overall defense spending, the U.S. spends far more than the rest of NATO combined. The current Trump administration has frequently criticized NATO states that they see as taking advantage of this discrepancy, urging other members to reach and even exceed the two percent threshold. Article 5 triggered in the aftermath of 9/11 While NATO was founded with the aim of deterring the Soviet Union in the Cold War, its central defense clause "Article 5" whereby an attack on one member is considered an attack on all, has only been triggered once; after the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States. NATO's involvement in the subsequent War in Afghanistan was a direct result of this, with troops supporting the operation from across the alliance. Although NATO's focus drifted towards counter-insurgency, and the threat from terrorism in this period, its original purpose has become far more important recently.

Graph and download economic data for Shares of gross domestic product: Government consumption expenditures and gross investment: Federal: National defense (A824RE1A156NBEA) from 1929 to 2024 about Shares of GDP, defense, investment, gross, federal, consumption expenditures, consumption, government, GDP, and USA.

The average for 2022 based on 42 countries was 1.49 percent. The highest value was in Togo: 5.44 percent and the lowest value was in Mauritius: 0.17 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2022. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Military expenditure (% of GDP) in Israel was reported at 5.3174 % in 2023, according to the World Bank collection of development indicators, compiled from officially recognized sources. Israel - Military expenditure (% of GDP) - actual values, historical data, forecasts and projections were sourced from the World Bank on September of 2025.

The average for 2022 based on 12 countries was 4.05 percent. The highest value was in Saudi Arabia: 7.42 percent and the lowest value was in Egypt: 1.06 percent. The indicator is available from 1960 to 2022. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.

Madagascar: Military spending, percent of GDP: The latest value from 2022 is 0.65 percent, a decline from 0.69 percent in 2021. In comparison, the world average is 1.98 percent, based on data from 145 countries. Historically, the average for Madagascar from 1961 to 2022 is 1.29 percent. The minimum value, 0.5 percent, was reached in 2016 while the maximum of 2.98 percent was recorded in 1981.