Armed forces personnel, total, per capita in China
China: Armed forces personnel, total, per capita was 0.0018 units per person in 2020. ▼ Falling
Armed forces personnel, total, per capita in China, 1985–2020
Source: Statizoid (derived). Measured in units per person.
Analysis
The most recent figure for armed forces personnel, total, per capita in China is 0.0018 units per person, measured in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 33 years on record.
That represents a change of down 0.2% on the previous year and down 18.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel, total, per capita in China peaked at 0.0037 units per person in 1985 and was at its lowest, 0.0018 units per person, in 2020.
That places China 132nd out of 173 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 33 years of available data.
Armed forces personnel, total, per capita in China, year by year
| Year | units per person | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 0.0037 units per person | — |
| 1989 | 0.0035 units per person | -6.0% |
| 1990 | 0.0031 units per person | -11.6% |
| 1991 | 0.0028 units per person | -9.8% |
| 1992 | 0.0027 units per person | -2.5% |
| 1993 | 0.0026 units per person | -5.2% |
| 1994 | 0.0025 units per person | -4.4% |
| 1995 | 0.0034 units per person | +39.4% |
| 1996 | 0.0034 units per person | -0.9% |
| 1997 | 0.003 units per person | -12.9% |
| 1998 | 0.0031 units per person | +3.9% |
| 1999 | 0.003 units per person | -0.9% |
| 2000 | 0.0031 units per person | +1.6% |
| 2001 | 0.003 units per person | -3.3% |
| 2002 | 0.0029 units per person | -1.7% |
| 2003 | 0.0029 units per person | -1.1% |
| 2004 | 0.0029 units per person | -0.5% |
| 2005 | 0.0029 units per person | -0.6% |
| 2006 | 0.0027 units per person | -4.5% |
| 2007 | 0.0022 units per person | -20.4% |
| 2008 | 0.0022 units per person | -0.5% |
| 2009 | 0.0022 units per person | +1.6% |
| 2010 | 0.0022 units per person | -0.5% |
| 2011 | 0.0022 units per person | -0.5% |
| 2012 | 0.0022 units per person | +0.9% |
| 2013 | 0.0022 units per person | -0.7% |
| 2014 | 0.0022 units per person | -0.6% |
| 2015 | 0.0021 units per person | -5.6% |
| 2016 | 0.0019 units per person | -5.7% |
| 2017 | 0.0019 units per person | -0.6% |
| 2018 | 0.0019 units per person | -0.5% |
| 2019 | 0.0018 units per person | -6.3% |
| 2020 | 0.0018 units per person | -0.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0.0036 units per person | 0.0035 units per person | 0.0037 units per person | 2 |
| 1990s | 0.003 units per person | 0.0025 units per person | 0.0034 units per person | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.0027 units per person | 0.0022 units per person | 0.0031 units per person | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.0021 units per person | 0.0018 units per person | 0.0022 units per person | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.0018 units per person | 0.0018 units per person | 0.0018 units per person | 1 |
Countries ranked near China
More public sector data for China
- Arms imports 72.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 0.0511 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate -83.29 % change on previous year (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), gaps filled 72.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per capita 222.62 current USD per person (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per unit of GDP 0.0167 current USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), annual growth rate 5.67 % change on previous year (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), gaps filled 313.66 billion current USD (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per square kilometre 45.91 SIPRI trend indicator values per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel, total, per capita in China?
- Armed forces personnel, total, per capita in China was 0.0018 units per person in 2020, according to Statizoid (derived).
- What is the highest armed forces personnel, total, per capita recorded in China?
- The highest recorded value was 0.0037 units per person in 1985.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel, total, per capita recorded in China?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0018 units per person in 2020.
- How does China rank for armed forces personnel, total, per capita?
- China ranks 132nd out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel, total, per capita rising or falling in China?
- Over the last ten years it is down 18.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this China data come from?
- The figures come from Statizoid (derived), published as part of Armed forces personnel, total, per capita. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page.
How this figure is calculated
Armed forces personnel, total divided by Population, total, matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.
Armed forces personnel, total ÷ Population, total
Computed from
- Armed forces personnel, total The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies
- Population, total World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN)
Statizoid computes this series; the underlying measurements belong to the publishers named above. The arithmetic is applied to every country and year where both inputs report, and nothing is estimated unless the page says so.
About this data
Armed forces personnel, total divided by Population, total, matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.