What is the difference in military expenditure between France and Saudi Arabia?

15.66 billion current USD, with Saudi Arabia ahead.

How many years of comparable data are there for France and Saudi Arabia?

61 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2024.

Where does this data come from?

SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), published as Military expenditure (current USD). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

France vs Saudi Arabia: Military expenditure

France

64.67 billion current USD

in 2024

Saudi Arabia

80.33 billion current USD

in 2024

France rank

9th

Saudi Arabia rank

7th

Military expenditure over time

France
Saudi Arabia

How they compare

Saudi Arabia currently reports 80.33 billion current USD against 64.67 billion current USD in France, a difference of 15.66 billion current USD.

That makes Saudi Arabia's figure about 1.2 times France's.

The two have swapped places 3 times across 61 shared years of data; in 1960 it was France ahead.

France ranks 9th and Saudi Arabia ranks 7th of 168 countries.

Across the 7 decades both report, France averaged higher in 5 and Saudi Arabia in 2.

Head to head by decade

Decade	France	Saudi Arabia	Difference	Ahead
1960s	4.24 billion current USD	211.64 million current USD	4.03 billion current USD	France
1970s	10.29 billion current USD	6.59 billion current USD	3.70 billion current USD	France
1980s	22.56 billion current USD	19.44 billion current USD	3.12 billion current USD	France
1990s	36.27 billion current USD	16.27 billion current USD	20.01 billion current USD	France
2000s	42.28 billion current USD	26.91 billion current USD	15.37 billion current USD	France
2010s	50.23 billion current USD	65.93 billion current USD	15.70 billion current USD	Saudi Arabia
2020s	58.20 billion current USD	71.35 billion current USD	13.15 billion current USD	Saudi Arabia

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher military expenditure, France or Saudi Arabia?: Saudi Arabia, at 80.33 billion current USD against 64.67 billion current USD in France as of 2024.
What is the difference in military expenditure between France and Saudi Arabia?: 15.66 billion current USD, with Saudi Arabia ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for France and Saudi Arabia?: 61 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2024.
How do France and Saudi Arabia rank globally for military expenditure?: France ranks 9th and Saudi Arabia ranks 7th of 168 countries.
Where does this data come from?: SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), published as Military expenditure (current USD). Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Individual pages

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

France vs Saudi Arabia: Military expenditure. Statizoid, drawing on SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Retrieved 20 August 2026, from https://public-sector.statizoid.com/compare/military-expenditure-current-usd/france/saudi-arabia/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://public-sector.statizoid.com/compare/military-expenditure-current-usd/france/saudi-arabia/">France vs Saudi Arabia: Military expenditure</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator: Military expenditure (current USD)
Unit: current USD
Source: SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI)
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage: 211 places, 10,601 data points, 1960–2024
Last refreshed: 20 August 2026

Military spending USD, in current prices (converted at the exchange rate for the given year)