24/7 Wall St. Insights
- According to the Global Firepower index, the 14 most powerful militaries are all in countries with at least 50 million residents.
- Some smaller countries, however, have developed fighting capabilities on par with the world’s largest nations.
- Many of these small but mighty countries are actively engaged in regional conflict, while others are standing armies.
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While the conventional view is that the world’s superpowers shape global military conflict, many smaller nations maintain standing militias of substantial size and strength. The structure of small armies has become an increasingly important topic in geopolitics as events like the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the Chinese military buildup in the South China Sea have escalated the need for small state defense.
Every year, Global Firepower ranks countries based on military might. While the 14 most powerful militaries are in countries classified as very large by the World Bank with over 50 million residents, several smaller countries have developed fighting capabilities on par with the world’s largest, wealthiest nations. Some of these small but mighty countries are actively engaged in regional conflicts, while others are standing armies that have not seen war in the 21st century.
To determine the small countries with the most disproportionately powerful militaries, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed data on population and military strength from the World Bank and Global Firepower. Countries categorized as medium-sized, small, or very small by the World Bank – a population threshold of about 11 million – were ranked based on the 2024 Global Firepower PowerIndex score. The Global Firepower PowerIndex is a comprehensive index utilizing over 60 individual factors – such as armed forces personnel, aircraft fleet, tank strength, frigate count, defense budget, and natural resources – that ranks 145 world powers in military fighting capability. The lower the index score, the more powerful the military. Supplemental data on armed forces personnel, armed forces personnel as a percentage of the labor force, military expenditure, military expenditure as a percentage of GDP, and total population are from the World Bank. All data are for the most recent period available.
40. Tajikistan
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 2.3049
- Armed forces personnel: 17,000 (0.7% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $139.5 million (1.2% of GDP)
- Total population: 10.4 million
39. Estonia
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 2.2917
- Armed forces personnel: 7,000 (1.0% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $1.2 billion (2.9% of GDP)
- Total population: 1.4 million
38. Laos
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 2.2663
- Armed forces personnel: 129,000 (4.1% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $22.7 million (0.2% of GDP)
- Total population: 7.7 million
37. Kyrgyzstan
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 2.2543
- Armed forces personnel: 21,000 (0.7% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $464.6 million (3.6% of GDP)
- Total population: 7.1 million
36. Honduras
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 2.1679
- Armed forces personnel: 23,000 (0.6% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $539.8 million (1.6% of GDP)
- Total population: 10.6 million
35. Uruguay
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- Global Firepower Ranking index: 2.1385
- Armed forces personnel: 22,000 (1.3% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $1.6 billion (2.0% of GDP)
- Total population: 3.4 million
34. Latvia
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 2.1246
- Armed forces personnel: 9,000 (0.9% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $1.0 billion (2.3% of GDP)
- Total population: 1.9 million
33. Mongolia
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 2.1135
- Armed forces personnel: 18,000 (1.3% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $147.8 million (0.6% of GDP)
- Total population: 3.5 million
32. Ireland
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 2.1103
- Armed forces personnel: 9,000 (0.4% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $1.3 billion (0.2% of GDP)
- Total population: 5.3 million
31. Slovenia
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 2.1016
- Armed forces personnel: 7,000 (0.7% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $907.5 million (1.3% of GDP)
- Total population: 2.1 million
30. Georgia
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 2.0695
- Armed forces personnel: 26,000 (1.4% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $504.6 million (1.7% of GDP)
- Total population: 3.7 million
29. Armenia
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 2.0373
- Armed forces personnel: 47,000 (3.2% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $1.3 billion (5.5% of GDP)
- Total population: 3.0 million
28. Lithuania
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.9075
- Armed forces personnel: 37,000 (2.5% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $2.2 billion (2.7% of GDP)
- Total population: 2.9 million
27. Paraguay
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.9044
- Armed forces personnel: 29,000 (0.9% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $397.9 million (0.9% of GDP)
- Total population: 6.8 million
26. New Zealand
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.9039
- Armed forces personnel: 10,000 (0.3% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $3.0 billion (1.2% of GDP)
- Total population: 5.2 million
25. Oman
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.8047
- Armed forces personnel: 47,000 (2.1% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $5.9 billion (5.4% of GDP)
- Total population: 5.0 million
24. Bahrain
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.7448
- Armed forces personnel: 19,000 (2.3% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $1.4 billion (3.1% of GDP)
- Total population: 1.6 million
23. Kuwait
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.6982
- Armed forces personnel: 25,000 (1.0% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $7.8 billion (4.9% of GDP)
- Total population: 4.9 million
22. Albania
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.6815
- Armed forces personnel: 8,000 (0.6% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $397.6 million (1.7% of GDP)
- Total population: 2.7 million
21. Turkmenistan
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.6512
- Armed forces personnel: 57,000 (2.6% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $111.9 million (2.9% of GDP)
- Total population: 7.4 million
20. Croatia
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.5074
- Armed forces personnel: 20,000 (1.2% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $1.4 billion (1.8% of GDP)
- Total population: 3.9 million
19. Libya
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.4449
- Armed forces personnel: N/A
- Military expenditure: $3.8 billion (15.5% of GDP)
- Total population: 7.3 million
18. Qatar
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.4307
- Armed forces personnel: 22,000 (1.1% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $15.4 billion (7.0% of GDP)
- Total population: 2.7 million
17. Slovakia
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.3978
- Armed forces personnel: 18,000 (0.7% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $2.7 billion (2.0% of GDP)
- Total population: 5.4 million
16. Belarus
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.3954
- Armed forces personnel: 158,000 (3.2% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $1.4 billion (1.8% of GDP)
- Total population: 9.2 million
15. Austria
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.3704
- Armed forces personnel: 23,000 (0.5% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $4.4 billion (0.8% of GDP)
- Total population: 9.1 million
14. Serbia
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.2576
- Armed forces personnel: 32,000 (1.0% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $2.1 billion (2.9% of GDP)
- Total population: 6.6 million
13. Bulgaria
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.2563
- Armed forces personnel: 37,000 (1.1% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $1.9 billion (1.8% of GDP)
- Total population: 6.4 million
12. Azerbaijan
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.2531
- Armed forces personnel: 82,000 (1.6% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $3.6 billion (4.6% of GDP)
- Total population: 10.2 million
11. Hungary
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.0259
- Armed forces personnel: 46,000 (0.9% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $4.4 billion (2.1% of GDP)
- Total population: 9.6 million
10. United Arab Emirates
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 1.0186
- Armed forces personnel: 63,000 (1.0% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $22.8 billion (5.6% of GDP)
- Total population: 10.5 million
9. Finland
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 0.8437
- Armed forces personnel: 22,000 (0.8% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $7.3 billion (2.4% of GDP)
- Total population: 5.6 million
8. Denmark
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 0.8109
- Armed forces personnel: 15,000 (0.5% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $8.1 billion (2.0% of GDP)
- Total population: 5.9 million
7. Switzerland
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 0.7869
- Armed forces personnel: 20,000 (0.4% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $6.3 billion (0.7% of GDP)
- Total population: 8.9 million
6. Portugal
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 0.6856
- Armed forces personnel: 52,000 (1.0% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $4.2 billion (1.5% of GDP)
- Total population: 10.6 million
5. Norway
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 0.6811
- Armed forces personnel: 25,000 (0.9% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $8.7 billion (1.6% of GDP)
- Total population: 5.5 million
4. Greece
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 0.5337
- Armed forces personnel: 147,000 (3.2% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $7.7 billion (3.2% of GDP)
- Total population: 10.4 million
3. Singapore
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 0.5271
- Armed forces personnel: 59,000 (1.7% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $13.2 billion (2.7% of GDP)
- Total population: 5.9 million
2. Sweden
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 0.4835
- Armed forces personnel: 15,000 (0.3% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $8.8 billion (1.5% of GDP)
- Total population: 10.5 million
1. Israel
- Global Firepower Ranking index: 0.2661
- Armed forces personnel: 178,000 (4.2% of labor force)
- Military expenditure: $27.5 billion (5.3% of GDP)
- Total population: 9.8 million
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