• The International Institute for Strategic Studies compiled data about the world's military budgets.
• The top militaries spend hundreds of billions of dollars on defense, with the US leading worldwide.
• President Donald Trump has proposed increasing annual defense spending to $1.5 trillion.

The world's military budgets totaled $2.6 trillion in 2025, and the US accounted for more than a third of that.

The US has the world's most expensive military, spending nearly $1 trillion on defense. That's over three and a half times China's reported defense budget, the next largest.

From spending on nuclear technology to advanced aircraft and warships, the world's top militaries allocate hundreds of billions of dollars each year to stay ahead.

In some countries, big-ticket items such as naval assets or technologically advanced aircraft or missiles account for the bulk of military spending, while others devote large sums to maintaining large conscription troop systems.

Ultimately, military spending varies by country depending on location and interests, Gian Gentile, a retired US Army colonel and senior historian at RAND, told Business Insider. Some countries prioritize homeland defense while others value overmatch and far-reaching power projection.

"The US spends a lot on more sophisticated, extremely precise weapon systems," he said.

A military's budget can be measured either as a total amount or as a share of its country's GDP, reflecting the burden on its economy. Worldwide, countries spent an average of 2.01% of their GDP on defense in 2025.

Wartime spending as a share of GDP typically rises, putting strain on the civilian economy, said Mark Cancian, a senior advisor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Ukraine in 2025, for example, devoted over 20% of its GDP to its military, the highest share globally.

Spending statistics help paint a picture of defense priorities, but they don't always translate into readiness for conflict.

"Readiness is very expensive, and perishable," Cancian said.

A country's on-paper investment in its defense systems doesn't always translate directly into military capability, he added. Training and maintenance are often overlooked in analyses of spending on equipment and technologies.

A particularly high cost when it comes to technologically advanced aircraft, for instance, is maintenance and sustainment.

Still, looking at military budgets can reveal how much capital each country relies on to defend itself.

Last year, the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a London-based think tank, released its Military Balance report, which included data on nearly every country's defense budget based on each's reported 2025 figures.

The report includes each country's total budget (in US dollars), per-capita figures, and defense budget as a share of GDP. Some countries, such as North Korea, Libya, Syria, Cuba, and Afghanistan, did not publicly report their defense budgets.

These are the 35 countries that spend the most on their military, ranked by the size of their defense budgets.

Defense budget: $8.41 billion

Defense budget per capita: $79

Percentage of GDP: 1.74%

Defense budget: $9.48 billion

Defense budget per capita: $527

Percentage of GDP: 2.24%

Defense budget: $10.02 billion

Defense budget per capita: $39

Percentage of GDP: 2.44%

Defense budget: $10.11 billion

Defense budget per capita: $3,935

Percentage of GDP: 4.55%

Defense budget: $11.36 billion

Defense budget per capita: $86

Percentage of GDP: 0.61%

Defense budget: $12.18 billion

Defense budget per capita: $2,013

Percentage of GDP: 2.65%

Defense budget: $12.68 billion

Defense budget per capita: $295

Percentage of GDP: 4.78%

Defense budget: $13.9 billion

Defense budget per capita: $1,161

Percentage of GDP: 1.94%

Defense budget: $15.08 billion

Defense budget per capita: $53

Percentage of GDP: 1.04%

Defense budget: $16.44 billion

Defense budget per capita: $2,966

Percentage of GDP: 3.18%

Defense budget: $17.06 billion

Defense budget per capita: $1,602

Percentage of GDP: 2.58%

Defense budget: $17.99 billion

Defense budget per capita: $2,958

Percentage of GDP: 3.13%

Defense budget: $21.2 billion

Defense budget per capita: $898

Percentage of GDP: 2.4%

Defense budget: $21.48 billion

Defense budget per capita: $254

Percentage of GDP: 1.37%

Defense budget: $21.68 billion

Defense budget per capita: $2,148

Percentage of GDP: 3.81%

Defense budget: $24.27 billion

Defense budget per capita: $110

Percentage of GDP: 1.08%

Defense budget: $25.21 billion

Defense budget per capita: $528

Percentage of GDP: 8.75%

Defense budget: $28.91 billion

Defense budget per capita: $611

Percentage of GDP: 1.53%

Defense budget: $29.12 billion

Defense budget per capita: $1,633

Percentage of GDP: 2.2%

Defense budget: $31.21 billion

Defense budget per capita: $797

Percentage of GDP: 1.37%

Defense budget: $33.18 billion

Defense budget per capita: $865

Percentage of GDP: 3.19%

Defense budget: $37.28 billion

Defense budget per capita: $1,378

Percentage of GDP: 2.04%

Defense budget: $39.68 billion

Defense budget per capita: $4,153

Percentage of GDP: 6.5%

Defense budget: $40.09 billion

Defense budget per capita: $658

Percentage of GDP: 1.58%

Defense budget: $43.84 billion

Defense budget per capita: $851

Percentage of GDP: 2.36%

Defense budget: $44.44 billion

Defense budget per capita: $1,217

Percentage of GDP: 21.19%

Defense budget: $58.91 billion

Defense budget per capita: $480

Percentage of GDP: 1.38%

Defense budget: $70 billion

Defense budget per capita: $1,022

Percentage of GDP: 2.08%

Defense budget: $72.53 billion

Defense budget per capita: $1,951

Percentage of GDP: 5.72%

Defense budget: $78.31 billion

Defense budget per capita: $55

Percentage of GDP: 1.9%

Defense budget: $94.26 billion

Defense budget per capita: $1,371

Percentage of GDP: 2.38%

Defense budget: $107.31 billion

Defense budget per capita: $1,277

Percentage of GDP: 2.14%

Defense budget: $161.18 billion

Defense budget per capita: $1,150

Percentage of GDP: 6.34%

Defense budget: $251.29 billion

Defense budget per capita: $178

Percentage of GDP: 1.3%

Defense budget: $921.02 billion

Defense budget per capita: $2,725

Percentage of GDP: 3.01%