The Top 15 Largest Defense Budgets in the World 🪖

What We're Showing

This graphic shows the top 15 largest defense budgets in 2024, based on data from the International Institute of Strategic Studies.

Key Takeaways

• In 2024, the U.S. spent nearly $1 trillion on its defense budget, equivalent to the next 12 largest defense budgets combined.
• Today, just five prime contracters receive 86% of the Pentagon's spending compared to 51 contracters being allocated 6% of defense spending at the end of the cold war.
• China's military modernization includes 600 operational nuclear warheads that are projected to reach 1,000 by 2030 as the country increasingly focuses on reunification with Taiwan.
• Russia has the third-largest defense budget globally, at $146 billion, representing 6% of the country's national income—the highest share since the cold war.