Armed forces personnel, total in Myanmar
Myanmar: Armed forces personnel, total was 463,000 in 2020. ▲ Rising
Armed forces personnel, total in Myanmar, 1985–2020
Source: The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
Analysis
Myanmar recorded 463,000 for armed forces personnel, total in 2020.
That represents a change of down 9.7% on the previous year and down 9.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel, total in Myanmar peaked at 595,000 in 2003 and was at its lowest, 186,000, in 1985.
Myanmar ranks 14th of 173 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Armed forces personnel, total in Myanmar, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 186,000 | — |
| 1989 | 200,000 | +7.5% |
| 1990 | 230,000 | +15.0% |
| 1991 | 286,000 | +24.3% |
| 1992 | 286,000 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 322,000 | +12.6% |
| 1994 | 322,000 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 371,300 | +15.3% |
| 1996 | 406,300 | +9.4% |
| 1997 | 429,050 | +5.6% |
| 1998 | 434,850 | +1.4% |
| 1999 | 429,050 | -1.3% |
| 2000 | 429,100 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 444,300 | +3.5% |
| 2002 | 544,300 | +22.5% |
| 2003 | 595,000 | +9.3% |
| 2004 | 482,250 | -18.9% |
| 2005 | 483,000 | +0.2% |
| 2006 | 513,000 | +6.2% |
| 2007 | 513,000 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 513,000 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 513,250 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 513,250 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 513,250 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 513,250 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 513,250 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 513,250 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 513,250 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 513,250 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 513,000 | -0.0% |
| 2018 | 513,000 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 513,000 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 463,000 | -9.7% |
Myanmar compared with similar countries
- Myanmar's 463,000 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 23,000, 20.1× the median. (43 countries reporting)
- Myanmar's 463,000 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 146,500, 3.2× the median. (20 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 193,000 | 186,000 | 200,000 | 2 |
| 1990s | 351,655 | 230,000 | 434,850 | 10 |
| 2000s | 503,020 | 429,100 | 595,000 | 10 |
| 2010s | 513,175 | 513,000 | 513,250 | 10 |
| 2020s | 463,000 | 463,000 | 463,000 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Myanmar
More public sector data for Myanmar
- Democracy, annual growth rate -100 % change on previous year (2021)
- 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 -100 % change on previous year (2021)
- Elected parliament, annual growth rate -100 % change on previous year (2021)
- Chief executive of the government is elected, annual growth rate -100 % change on previous year (2021)
- Democracy 0 (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected 0 (2025)
- Elected parliament 0 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel, total in Myanmar?
- Armed forces personnel, total in Myanmar was 463,000 in 2020, according to The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
- What is the highest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Myanmar?
- The highest recorded value was 595,000 in 2003.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Myanmar?
- The lowest recorded value was 186,000 in 1985.
- How does Myanmar rank for armed forces personnel, total?
- Myanmar ranks 14th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel, total rising or falling in Myanmar?
- Over the last ten years it is down 9.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Myanmar 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.