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.

Graph and download economic data for Government current expenditures: Federal: National defense (G160461A027NBEA) from 1959 to 2023 about defense, expenditures, federal, government, GDP, and USA.

In 2023, the United States spent around 916.02 billion U.S. dollars on its military. U.S. military spending has been increasing in current dollar terms since 2016. Spending increased dramatically in 2022 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. After the first year of the war, the U.S. had contributed more than 40 billion euros worth of military aid to Ukraine. What military spending entails Military spending in the United States is the part of the national outlays of the Department of Defense. While the department has over two trillion dollars in budgetary resources, its outlays - money actually paid out - are significantly lower. This budget is designated for the four branches of the United States military, and is used for everything from salaries, trainings, development of new military technologies, and new aircraft and weaponry. The high cost of U.S. spending The United States is well known for spending more on its military than any other country. In 2023, it was estimated that per capita defense spending amounted to 2,220 U.S. dollars. While this figure is extremely high, many Americans may find it worthwhile, as a majority believe the United States to be the number one military power in the world.

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 October of 2025.

Graph and download economic data for Federal Government: National Defense Consumption Expenditures and Gross Investment (FDEFX) from Q1 1947 to Q2 2025 about defense, investment, gross, consumption expenditures, federal, consumption, government, GDP, and USA.

United States US: Military Expenditure: % of GDP data was reported at 3.149 % in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 3.222 % for 2016. United States US: Military Expenditure: % of GDP data is updated yearly, averaging 4.864 % from Sep 1960 (Median) to 2017, with 58 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 9.063 % in 1967 and a record low of 2.908 % in 1999. United States US: Military Expenditure: % of GDP data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s United States – Table US.World Bank.WDI: Defense and Official Development Assistance. Military expenditures data from SIPRI are derived from the NATO definition, which includes all current and capital expenditures on the armed forces, including peacekeeping forces; defense ministries and other government agencies engaged in defense projects; paramilitary forces, if these are judged to be trained and equipped for military operations; and military space activities. Such expenditures include military and civil personnel, including retirement pensions of military personnel and social services for personnel; operation and maintenance; procurement; military research and development; and military aid (in the military expenditures of the donor country). Excluded are civil defense and current expenditures for previous military activities, such as for veterans' benefits, demobilization, conversion, and destruction of weapons. This definition cannot be applied for all countries, however, since that would require much more detailed information than is available about what is included in military budgets and off-budget military expenditure items. (For example, military budgets might or might not cover civil defense, reserves and auxiliary forces, police and paramilitary forces, dual-purpose forces such as military and civilian police, military grants in kind, pensions for military personnel, and social security contributions paid by one part of government to another.); ; Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), Yearbook: Armaments, Disarmament and International Security.; Weighted average; Data for some countries are based on partial or uncertain data or rough estimates.

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.

This graph shows the defense expenditures of the United States per capita from 1995 to 2024. In 2024, it is estimated that around 2,239 U.S. dollars per capita were spent on military causes by the United States. A ranking of countries with the highest military expenditures can be accessed here.

Defense outlays in the United States amounted to 855 billion U.S. dollars in 2024. Furthermore, defense spending was forecast to increase to 871 billion U.S. dollars in 2025, and 1.07 trillion U.S. dollars by 2035.

Military Expenditure in the United States increased to 997309 USD Million in 2024 from 916014.70 USD Million in 2023. United States Military Expenditure - values, historical data, forecasts and news - updated on December of 2025.

For this study, data-tables of the following authors were compiled:Walter G. Hoffmann, Jörg Beutenmüller, Lutz Koellner,Carol Bielefeld, and Klaus Detlef Tiepelmann future. The sources, as well as the summary table, provide information about the subject area the respective author was in charge with. (A detailed description is as WORD or PDF file available) Hoffman determined a correlation between GNP and military expenditures of countries with different economic and social systems. The author Beutemueller found in his analysis a comparatively high proportion of military expenditure in the social product, because he summarized military expenditures an a portion of war costs, and he related both to the lower reference of the net gross national product (at factor cost). Factual classification of the corresponding data tables in search- and downloadsystem HISTAT(Historical Statistics (www.histat.gesis.org): A. Expenditures on Defence according to Walter G. HoffmannA.1 The structure of public consumption per type of spending according to Hoffmann (1850-1959)A.2 The structure of public spending (public consumption plus public investments) per type of spending according to Hoffmann (1850-1959)A.3 Public consumption in current prices according to Hoffmann (1925-1938)A.4 Public consumption in current prices according to Hoffmann (1850-1959)A.5 Public consumption in million marks (in prices of 1913) according to Hoffmann (1850-1959) B. Military expenditure according to Jörg BeutenmüllerB.1 Military expenditure and their proportion of public spending according to Beutenmüller (1872-1968)B.2 Military expenditure and their proportion of the public spending of the FRG according to Beutenmüller (1951-1968)B.3 Military expenditure and their proportion of the net national product with regard to factor costs according to Beutenmüller (1872-1968) C. Military expenditure in Germany according to the study by Lutz KöllnerC.1 Long series referring to the military expenditure in Germany (1900 - 1980)C.1.1 Proportion of military expenditure of the total public spending in selected years in percent (1872-1962)C.1.2 Military expenditure per capita and per employed person in Germany (1900-1980)C.1.3 Proportion of the military expenditure of the net national product at factor prices in million marks (1900-1978)C.1.4 Education spending of the military (1900-1977)C.1.5 Military expenditure per capita of all soldiers and per capita of the officers in billion marks/ reichsmarks/ deutschmarks (1900-1976)C.1.6 Defence density and intensity (1900-1976)C.1.7 Military expenditure in Germany in billion marks/ reichsmarks/ deutschmarks in current prices (1900-1976)C.1.8 Military expenditure in Germany in percent in current prices (1900-1976) C.2 Other tables for the period before 1945 (von Lutz Köllner)C.2.1 Budget and debts of the German Reich in billion reichsmarks (1933-1945)C.2.2 Germany`s arms expenditure in billion reichsmarks (1932-1939)C.2.3 Public spending and arms expenditure of the German Reich in billion reichsmarks (1932-1939)C.2.4 Increase in national debt in selected states (1914-1950)C.2.5 Public spending in Prussia (1640-1862)C.2.6 Arms expenditure and national income in million reichsmarks according to Blaich (1932-1938) C.3 Military and finances in the Federal Republic of Germany, the NATO states, and the world (by Lutz Köllner)C.3.1 Defence expenditure of the NATO states (1949-1980)C.3.2 Social burdens resulting from the war in the Federal Republic of Germany in million deutschmarks (1949-1956)C.3.3 Public spending per capita in deutschmarks (1952-1976)C.3.4 Overall expenditure and defence spending by the Federal Republic of Germany in billion deutschmarks (1956-1981)C.3.5 Distribution of worldwide military expenditure in percent (1955-1980)C.3.6 The long-term development of the defence budget of the Federal Republic of Germany in billion deutschmarks (1956-1984) D. Arms expenditure in the FRG according to Carola BielfeldtD.1 Defence spending according to different sources in million deutschmarks (1950-1972)D.2 Defence spending in accordance with the NATO criteria in million deutschmarks (1950-1971)D.3 Development of defence spending structure (1950-1971)D.4 Acquisition data for the national economy (1950-1972)D.5 Proportion of defence spending (1950-1971) E. Defence spending in the FRG according to Klaus Tiepelmann and Detlef ZukunftE.1 Development of defence spending in the Federal Republic of Germany according to Tiepelmann and Zukunft (1955-1992). Timeseries are downloadable via the online system HISTAT (www.histat.gesis.org).

In 2023, the U.S. government had a budget deficit of 1.69 trillion U.S. dollars. This is compared to 2000, when the government had a budget surplus of 0.24 trillion U.S. dollars.

U.S. Government budget

The government budget is a financial statement that demonstrates the government’s suggested revenues and spending for the financial year. Budget surpluses occur when income exceeds expenditures. Budget deficits occur when spending exceeds income. The budget balance of the U.S. government has fluctuated since 2016, and is expected to decrease slightly by 2026.

Military spending

Defense outlays in the United States amounted to 714 billion U.S. dollars in 2020. It is expected to continue to increase over the next several years. The United States currently has the largest defense budget in the world, and is the largest employer in the world. The military budget funds the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and Air Force. The amount of funding that goes towards the Department of Defense is heavily criticized by Democrats in the United States, because they believe that the funding should be more evenly distributed towards other social welfare programs such as public health insurance and education.

United States US: GDP: USD: Final Consumption Expenditure: General Government data was reported at 2,658.088 USD bn in 2016. This records an increase from the previous number of 2,610.800 USD bn for 2015. United States US: GDP: USD: Final Consumption Expenditure: General Government data is updated yearly, averaging 819.773 USD bn from Dec 1960 (Median) to 2016, with 57 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 2,658.088 USD bn in 2016 and a record low of 85.000 USD bn in 1960. United States US: GDP: USD: Final Consumption Expenditure: General Government data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by World Bank. The data is categorized under Global Database’s USA – Table US.World Bank: Gross Domestic Product: Nominal. General government final consumption expenditure (formerly general government consumption) includes all government current expenditures for purchases of goods and services (including compensation of employees). It also includes most expenditures on national defense and security, but excludes government military expenditures that are part of government capital formation. Data are in current U.S. dollars.; ; World Bank national accounts data, and OECD National Accounts data files.; Gap-filled total;

Defense outlays in the United States reached three percent of the GDP in 2024. This amounted to a total value of about 855 billion U.S. dollars. The share of this expenditure was expected to decrease to 2.4 percent of U.S. GDP by 2035.

From the website: https://dataverse.harvard.edu/dataset.xhtml?persistentId=doi:10.7910/DVN/DHMZOW

The world has become much more peaceful, and yet, even after adjusting for inflation, global military spending is now three times greater than at the height of the Cold War. These developments have motivated a renewed interest from both policy makers and scholars about the drivers of military spending and the implications that follow. Existing findings on the relationship between threat and arming and arms races and war hinge on the completeness and accuracy of existing military spending data. Moreover, data on military spending is used to measure important concepts from international relations such as the distribution of power, balancing, the severity of states’ military burdens, and arms races. Everything we know about which states are most powerful, whether nations are balancing, and whether military burdens and arms races are growing more or less severe rests on the accuracy of existing military spending estimates.

Data is plural description: Global military spending. How much money has each country spent, each year, on its military? Different datasets have different answers, cover different timeframes, and use different methodologies. Miriam Barnum et al.’s Global Military Spending Dataset attempts to bring them together. By uniting “76 variables from 9 dataset collection projects,” the authors write, “we provide the most comprehensive and complete set of published datasets on military spending ever assembled.” Each of the variables represents one source/methodology, and each observation is a country-year. “Disagreement on the actual expenditure value for a given country-year is common, even between datasets produced by the same project,” they find. Previously: The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute’s Military Expenditure Database (DIP 2017.03.29), one of the sources.

The US Defense Market is Segmented by Armed Forces (Army, Navy, and Air Force) and Type (Fixed-Wing Aircraft, Rotorcraft, Ground Vehicles, Naval Vessels, C4isr, Weapons and Ammunition, Protection and Training Equipment, and Unmanned Systems). The Report Offers Market Size and Forecast for all the Above Segments in Value (USD).

The United States federal government budget has allotted around ** billion dollars toward its 2025 civilian federal agency information technology budget. As leadership and government priorities change, the IT budgets allocated to different departments tend to follow suit. The Department of Energy's IT budget increased significantly by ** percent compared to the previous year, with *** billion U.S. dollars allocated in FY 2025. Similarly, the IT budget of the Department of Homeland security also increased by ** percent compared to the previous year, to around ** billion U.S. dollars for FY 2025. Meanwhile, the Office of Personnel Management saw its IT budget shrink the most among the civilian federal government agencies, decreasing by a staggering ** percent compared to FY 2024. Since the 2022 federal budget, figures do not include the portion of the budget allocated to the Department of Defense or other classified IT spending. U.S. government budget In the United States, huge shares of government expenditures go towards the Department of Health and Human Services as well as the Social Security Administration. Due in part to the country’s continually increasing budget, the government has run at an annual deficit since 2002, with its 2024 deficit estimated to over be around *** trillion dollars. Cybersecurity budget One of the main facets of the U.S. government IT budget is spending related to cybersecurity. Over ** billion U.S. dollars have been allocated towards cybersecurity in 2024. The Departments of Homeland Security and Justice have unsurprisingly had the highest cybersecurity budgets across all departments, given the sensitive nature of their work.

As per Cognitive Market Research's latest published report, the Global Military Vetronics market size will be $3,930.54 Million by 2028.The Global Military Vetronics Market Industry's Compound Annual Growth Rate will 4.55%from 2023 to 2030. What are the factors impacting Military Vetronics Market?

Increasing adaption of technological advancement in defense sector

The defense industry relied on commercial technology innovation to adopt new advancements. Many developed and developing countries are ready to adapt the technology innovations for military purposes. In the defense industry, big data and Internet of Things (IoT) plays the important role for technology innovations.

Along with that, many countries are investing huge amount in smart systems and artificial intelligence (AI). In 2018, the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) announced a $2 billion campaign to develop the AI technologies and create more trusting, collaborative partnerships between human and machines. In the defense industry, artificial intelligence helps to use data effectively. It is also the gateway towards autonomous systems like amphibious vehicles, unmanned ground vehicles, infantry fighting vehicles, and mine-resistant ambush protection vehicles.

Military vetronics include involvement of several electronic systems that is installed on a vehicle in order to control various functions, such as communication, navigation, and weapons. It consists of components from boards and chips to displays and power electronics. Real time data helps soldiers with situational awareness during battle. This advanced system strengthens the defense system.

Almost all countries are focusing and investing to make their defense sector strong enough. Following picturized statistic shows the list of 15 countries with the highest military spending in 2019. United States ranked first, with defense spending total of approx. 732 billion U.S. dollars. Increasing adaption of technological advancement in defense sector is one of the major driving factors for the growth of military vetronics market.

Restraints for Military Vetronics Market

Lack of skilled Labors. (Access Detailed Analysis in the Full Report Version)

Opportunities for Military Vetronics Market

Intensifying jaggedness of military vetronics. (Access Detailed Analysis in the Full Report Version)

What is Military Vetronics?

Military Vetronics are the electronic parts or systems installed on vehicles that the safeguard organization mainly work. Military vetronics control functions such as navigation, communication and weapons. It is a major element of military vehicles. Military uses vetronics as a necessary and efficient technology for far, national security and armoury objectives.

The system consists of several components including boards, chips, displays, power electronics and some others. Vetronics helps solders to provide situational awareness during battlefield settings, it collects real-time data and can be analyzed by wireless electronic system. It improves the battle capacity, performance, efficiency and situational attention to the tactical vehicles.

Communication and navigation system, weapon control system, power system, display, sensor and others are some of the types of vetronics systems which are installed on military vehicles. These systems are integrated in vehicles according to their objectives such as to have secure, seamless and integrated communication and to make quick decisions on battlefield.

Nowadays, modern militaries are focusing on adoption of new technologies to utilize information advantage. Militaries of different countries are engaged in improving their equipment to focus on improving situational awareness in battlefield management. These are some of the factors are creating the opportunity for military vetronics market during forecast period.

In 2024, the military spending worldwide amounted to 2.7 trillion U.S. dollars, which was the highest during the period under consideration. Comparatively, global military spending was at 1.1 trillion U.S. dollars in 2001 and at 1.7 trillion U.S. dollars in 2010, past the peak of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Russia-Ukraine War The Russia-Ukraine War has been a major driver of more recent military spending increases. From 2021 to 2022, the ratio of Ukraine’s military spending to their GDP increased substantially from 3.8 percent to 33.5 percent, reaching 36 percent in 2023. By comparison, this ratio increased in Russia from 3.6 percent in 2021 to only 4 percent in 2022. As a result, large amounts of bilateral aid have gone towards Ukraine. While EU institutions have contributed the most financial and humanitarian aid, the United States has contributed the most military aid towards Ukraine. Spending by nation Globally, the United States had the largest amount of military spending by large in 2024. The United States spent 997 billion U.S. dollars in 2024 towards defense, compared to 314 billion U.S. dollars and 149 billion U.S. dollars spent by China and Russia, respectively. As a percentage of GDP, Ukraine spent the most globally, contributing nearly 35 percent of their GDP to defense, followed by Israel at 8.8 percent and Algeria at eight percent.

In 2025, the United States spent an estimated *** billion U.S. dollars on defence. This makes their defence budget, by far, the biggest out of all the NATO members. Germany was the country with the second-highest defence expenditure at ***** billion U.S. Dollars, with the UK following in third.