Military Expenditure as % of GDP by Country (1949–2024)

Military spending as a share of GDP for 166 countries from 1949 to 2024, sourced from SIPRI via Our World in Data.
# Entity
Code
Year
Military expenditure (% of GDP)
World region according to OWID
1 Afghanistan AFG 1970 1.6296061 Asia
2 Afghanistan AFG 1973 1.8689103 Asia
3 Afghanistan AFG 1974 1.6108247 Asia
4 Afghanistan AFG 1975 1.7220657 Asia
5 Afghanistan AFG 1976 2.046087 Asia
6 Afghanistan AFG 1977 2.0114748 Asia
7 Afghanistan AFG 2004 2.4312537 Asia
8 Afghanistan AFG 2005 1.9920657 Asia
9 Afghanistan AFG 2006 1.896234 Asia
10 Afghanistan AFG 2007 2.5662673 Asia
11 Afghanistan AFG 2008 2.3355458 Asia
12 Afghanistan AFG 2009 2.0874126 Asia
13 Afghanistan AFG 2010 1.9458357 Asia
14 Afghanistan AFG 2011 1.8213454 Asia
15 Afghanistan AFG 2012 1.1754161 Asia
16 Afghanistan AFG 2013 1.0769497 Asia
17 Afghanistan AFG 2014 1.2980129 Asia
18 Afghanistan AFG 2015 0.99457586 Asia
19 Afghanistan AFG 2016 0.95677215 Asia
20 Afghanistan AFG 2017 0.9452267 Asia
21 Afghanistan AFG 2018 1.0067458 Asia
22 Afghanistan AFG 2019 1.1709684 Asia
23 Afghanistan AFG 2020 1.3588569 Asia
24 Afghanistan AFG 2021 1.8279338 Asia
25 Albania ALB 1980 6.0520215 Europe
26 Albania ALB 1981 5.848317 Europe
27 Albania ALB 1982 5.6515956 Europe
28 Albania ALB 1983 5.441282 Europe
29 Albania ALB 1984 6.1175046 Europe
30 Albania ALB 1985 5.6514263 Europe
31 Albania ALB 1986 5.6261864 Europe
32 Albania ALB 1987 5.862229 Europe
33 Albania ALB 1988 5.6173167 Europe
34 Albania ALB 1989 5.167613 Europe
35 Albania ALB 1990 5.888301 Europe
36 Albania ALB 1991 5.7912703 Europe
37 Albania ALB 1992 4.670888 Europe
38 Albania ALB 1993 3.199451 Europe
39 Albania ALB 1994 2.547819 Europe
40 Albania ALB 1995 2.0535874 Europe
41 Albania ALB 1996 1.3790296 Europe
42 Albania ALB 1997 1.2830808 Europe
43 Albania ALB 1998 1.2382425 Europe
44 Albania ALB 1999 1.2492101 Europe
45 Albania ALB 2000 1.2463602 Europe
46 Albania ALB 2001 1.3092914 Europe
47 Albania ALB 2002 1.3200345 Europe
48 Albania ALB 2003 1.336843 Europe
49 Albania ALB 2004 1.3811579 Europe
50 Albania ALB 2005 1.3500049 Europe
51 Albania ALB 2006 1.567769 Europe
52 Albania ALB 2007 1.8207655 Europe
53 Albania ALB 2008 1.984869 Europe
54 Albania ALB 2009 1.5172172 Europe
55 Albania ALB 2010 1.5585918 Europe
56 Albania ALB 2011 1.5282663 Europe
57 Albania ALB 2012 1.4870826 Europe
58 Albania ALB 2013 1.408982 Europe
59 Albania ALB 2014 1.346516 Europe
60 Albania ALB 2015 1.1623039 Europe
61 Albania ALB 2016 1.1035811 Europe
62 Albania ALB 2017 1.109151 Europe
63 Albania ALB 2018 1.1605448 Europe
64 Albania ALB 2019 1.280806 Europe
65 Albania ALB 2020 1.2958357 Europe
66 Albania ALB 2021 1.2429881 Europe
67 Albania ALB 2022 1.2087886 Europe
68 Albania ALB 2023 1.7407335 Europe
69 Albania ALB 2024 2.0378623 Europe
70 Algeria DZA 1960 1.6136363 Africa
71 Algeria DZA 1961 1.9237287 Africa
72 Algeria DZA 1963 2.5114856 Africa
73 Algeria DZA 1964 3.496454 Africa
74 Algeria DZA 1965 3.4186351 Africa
75 Algeria DZA 1966 3.5125937 Africa
76 Algeria DZA 1967 3.0191004 Africa
77 Algeria DZA 1968 2.6147277 Africa
78 Algeria DZA 1969 2.3868675 Africa
79 Algeria DZA 1970 2.1305392 Africa
80 Algeria DZA 1971 2.087585 Africa
81 Algeria DZA 1972 1.795844 Africa
82 Algeria DZA 1973 1.6881621 Africa
83 Algeria DZA 1974 1.9576682 Africa
84 Algeria DZA 1975 2.1310942 Africa
85 Algeria DZA 1976 2.7017212 Africa
86 Algeria DZA 1977 2.2419505 Africa
87 Algeria DZA 1978 2.375229 Africa
88 Algeria DZA 1979 2.138696 Africa
89 Algeria DZA 1980 2.1020632 Africa
90 Algeria DZA 1981 1.818049 Africa
91 Algeria DZA 1982 2.0630975 Africa
92 Algeria DZA 1983 1.9512131 Africa
93 Algeria DZA 1984 1.755124 Africa
94 Algeria DZA 1985 1.6437068 Africa
95 Algeria DZA 1986 1.7872136 Africa
96 Algeria DZA 1987 1.8563762 Africa
97 Algeria DZA 1988 1.7496989 Africa
98 Algeria DZA 1989 1.5401238 Africa
99 Algeria DZA 1990 1.4610705 Africa
100 Algeria DZA 1991 1.210834 Africa

Military Expenditure as % of GDP by Country (1949–2024) — Analysis

Ukraine dedicates 34.5% of GDP to defense in 2024 — four times the next-highest country (Israel at 8.8%)

The global median military burden has risen since 2018 after three decades of post-Cold War decline

Key Findings

  • The global median fell from 2.7% of GDP in 1980 to 1.3% in 2015 — a 52% decline driven by the end of the Cold War
  • Since 2018, military spending is climbing again: the global median rose from 1.37% to 1.59% in 2024
  • Russia's defense burden jumped from 3.5% to 7.1% of GDP between 2021 and 2024
  • 14 of 24 European NATO members now meet the 2% target, up from just 3-4 a decade ago
  • Africa and Latin America spend the least (medians of 1.25% and 1.17%), while Asia leads at 2.27%

Visualizations

Ukraine's Military Spending (1993–2024)
European NATO Members vs. 2% Target (2024)
Major Powers: Military Spending Trends (1992–2024)
Global Median Military Spending (1960–2024)

Expand Analysis

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