Armed forces personnel, total in Ecuador
Ecuador: Armed forces personnel, total was 42,000 in 2020. ▼ Falling
Armed forces personnel, total in Ecuador, 1985–2020
Source: The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
Analysis
Ecuador recorded 42,000 for armed forces personnel, total in 2020.
That represents a change of down 28.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel, total in Ecuador peaked at 59,800 in 2001 and was at its lowest, 40,750, in 2014.
That places Ecuador 77th out of 173 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 33 years of available data.
Armed forces personnel, total in Ecuador, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 42,500 | — |
| 1989 | 46,000 | +8.2% |
| 1990 | 53,000 | +15.2% |
| 1991 | 53,000 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 57,000 | +7.5% |
| 1993 | 57,000 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 57,000 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 57,400 | +0.7% |
| 1996 | 57,400 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 57,370 | -0.1% |
| 1998 | 57,370 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 57,370 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 57,800 | +0.7% |
| 2001 | 59,800 | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 59,800 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 59,800 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 46,270 | -22.6% |
| 2005 | 47,270 | +2.2% |
| 2006 | 57,400 | +21.4% |
| 2007 | 58,400 | +1.7% |
| 2008 | 58,400 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 58,983 | +1.0% |
| 2010 | 58,983 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 58,983 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 58,500 | -0.8% |
| 2013 | 58,983 | +0.8% |
| 2014 | 40,750 | -30.9% |
| 2015 | 40,750 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 40,750 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 41,000 | +0.6% |
| 2018 | 41,250 | +0.6% |
| 2019 | 42,000 | +1.8% |
| 2020 | 42,000 | +0.0% |
Ecuador compared with similar countries
- Ecuador's 42,000 is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 64,000, 66% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
- Ecuador's 42,000 is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 28,500, 1.5× the median. (28 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Armed forces personnel, total in Ecuador 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | -30.9% | 58,983 | 40,750 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 44,250 | 42,500 | 46,000 | 2 |
| 1990s | 56,391 | 53,000 | 57,400 | 10 |
| 2000s | 56,392 | 46,270 | 59,800 | 10 |
| 2010s | 48,195 | 40,750 | 58,983 | 10 |
| 2020s | 42,000 | 42,000 | 42,000 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Ecuador
- 75 Chad 45,000 compare
- 76 Guatemala 43,000 compare
- 77 El Salvador 42,000 compare
- 79 Mali 41,000 compare
- 79 Netherlands 41,000 compare
More public sector data for Ecuador
- Democracy, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Elected parliament, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Democracy 6 (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected 1 (2025)
- Elected parliament 1 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel, total in Ecuador?
- Armed forces personnel, total in Ecuador was 42,000 in 2020, according to The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
- What is the highest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Ecuador?
- The highest recorded value was 59,800 in 2001.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Ecuador?
- The lowest recorded value was 40,750 in 2014.
- How does Ecuador rank for armed forces personnel, total?
- Ecuador ranks 77th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel, total rising or falling in Ecuador?
- Over the last ten years it is down 28.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ecuador 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
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.