Armed forces personnel, total in North Korea
North Korea: Armed forces personnel, total was 1.47 million in 2020. ▲ Rising
Armed forces personnel, total in North Korea, 1985–2020
Source: The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
Analysis
North Korea recorded 1.47 million for armed forces personnel, total in 2020. That is the highest value across all 33 years on record.
That represents a change of up 6.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel, total in North Korea peaked at 1.47 million in 2016 and was at its lowest, 838,000, in 1985.
That places North Korea 3rd out of 173 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 939,000 | 838,000 | 1.04 million | 2 |
| 1990s | 1.19 million | 1.10 million | 1.24 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.29 million | 1.24 million | 1.38 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.42 million | 1.38 million | 1.47 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.47 million | 1.47 million | 1.47 million | 1 |
Countries ranked near North Korea
More public sector data for North Korea
- Arms imports 1.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2010)
- Military expenditure 1.60 billion current USD (2018)
- Armed forces personnel 8.6% (2020)
- Statistical performance indicators (SPI): Pillar 1 data use score 10 scale 0-100 (2024)
- Statistical performance indicators (SPI): Pillar 3 data products score 46.56 scale 0-100 (2024)
- Military expenditure 216.60 billion current LCU (2018)
- Proportion of seats held by women in national parliaments 17.6% (2025)
- Internally displaced persons, new displacement associated with disaste 200 number of cases (2022)
- Arms exports 243.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel, total in North Korea?
- Armed forces personnel, total in North Korea was 1.47 million in 2020, according to The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
- What is the highest armed forces personnel, total recorded in North Korea?
- The highest recorded value was 1.47 million in 2016.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel, total recorded in North Korea?
- The lowest recorded value was 838,000 in 1985.
- How does North Korea rank for armed forces personnel, total?
- North Korea ranks 3rd out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel, total rising or falling in North Korea?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this North Korea 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.