Armed forces personnel, total in Brunei
Brunei: Armed forces personnel, total was 8,000 in 2020. ▲ Rising
Armed forces personnel, total in Brunei, 1985–2020
Source: The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
Analysis
The most recent figure for armed forces personnel, total in Brunei is 8,000, measured in 2020.
The figure is down 13.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel, total in Brunei peaked at 12,100 in 2016 and was at its lowest, 4,000, in 1989.
That places Brunei 140th out of 173 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Armed forces personnel, total in Brunei, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 4,100 | — |
| 1989 | 4,000 | -2.4% |
| 1990 | 4,000 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 4,000 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 4,000 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 4,000 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 5,000 | +25.0% |
| 1995 | 9,000 | +80.0% |
| 1996 | 9,100 | +1.1% |
| 1997 | 9,050 | -0.5% |
| 1998 | 9,050 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 8,750 | -3.3% |
| 2000 | 8,800 | +0.6% |
| 2001 | 9,700 | +10.2% |
| 2002 | 10,700 | +10.3% |
| 2003 | 10,700 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 10,000 | -6.5% |
| 2005 | 11,000 | +10.0% |
| 2006 | 9,000 | -18.2% |
| 2007 | 9,000 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 9,000 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 9,250 | +2.8% |
| 2010 | 9,250 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 9,250 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 9,250 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 9,250 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 9,250 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 9,250 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 12,100 | +30.8% |
| 2017 | 8,000 | -33.9% |
| 2018 | 8,200 | +2.5% |
| 2019 | 8,000 | -2.4% |
| 2020 | 8,000 | +0.0% |
Brunei compared with similar countries
- Brunei's 8,000 is below the median for high income countries, which is 25,000, 32% of the median. (57 countries reporting)
- Brunei's 8,000 is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 146,500, 5% of the median. (20 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Armed forces personnel, total in Brunei changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | +80.0% | 5,000 | 9,000 |
| 2017 | -33.9% | 12,100 | 8,000 |
| 2016 | +30.8% | 9,250 | 12,100 |
| 1994 | +25.0% | 4,000 | 5,000 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 4,050 | 4,000 | 4,100 | 2 |
| 1990s | 6,595 | 4,000 | 9,100 | 10 |
| 2000s | 9,715 | 8,800 | 11,000 | 10 |
| 2010s | 9,180 | 8,000 | 12,100 | 10 |
| 2020s | 8,000 | 8,000 | 8,000 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Brunei
More public sector data for Brunei
- Democracy 0 (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected 0 (2025)
- Elected parliament 0 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 0 (2025)
- Competitive elections 0 (2025)
- Universal right to vote 0 (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice 0 (2025)
- Arms imports 28.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 60.51 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0018 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel, total in Brunei?
- Armed forces personnel, total in Brunei was 8,000 in 2020, according to The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
- What is the highest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Brunei?
- The highest recorded value was 12,100 in 2016.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Brunei?
- The lowest recorded value was 4,000 in 1989.
- How does Brunei rank for armed forces personnel, total?
- Brunei ranks 140th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel, total rising or falling in Brunei?
- Over the last ten years it is down 13.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Brunei data come from?
- The figures come from The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies, published as part of Armed forces personnel, total. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Armed forces personnel are active duty military personnel, including paramilitary forces if the training, organization, equipment, and control suggest they may be used to support or replace regular military forces.