Armed forces personnel, total in Netherlands

Netherlands: Armed forces personnel, total was 41,000 in 2020. ▼ Falling

Latest (2020)
41,000
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
79th
of 173 countries
All-time high
106,000
in 1989
All-time low
41,000
in 2007
Years of data
33
1985–2020

Armed forces personnel, total in Netherlands, 1985–2020

025.0k50.0k75.0k100.0k1985200220201985: 105.5k1989: 106.0k1990: 104.0k1991: 104.0k1992: 90.0k1993: 86.0k1994: 77.0k1995: 78.0k1996: 66.7k1997: 60.8k1998: 60.8k1999: 60.0k2000: 57.1k2001: 55.6k2002: 52.9k2003: 59.9k2004: 53.0k2005: 60.0k2006: 46.0k2007: 41.0k2008: 47.0k2009: 43.3k2010: 43.3k2011: 43.3k2012: 43.3k2013: 43.3k2014: 41.9k2015: 41.3k2016: 41.3k2017: 41.0k2018: 41.4k2019: 41.0k2020: 41.0k

Source: The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Analysis

The most recent figure for armed forces personnel, total in Netherlands is 41,000, measured in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 33 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 5.3% over ten years.

Over the whole period, armed forces personnel, total in Netherlands peaked at 106,000 in 1989 and was at its lowest, 41,000, in 2007.

That places Netherlands 79th 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.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 105,750 105,500 106,000 2
1990s 78,728 60,000 104,000 10
2000s 51,578 41,000 60,000 10
2010s 42,111 41,000 43,300 10
2020s 41,000 41,000 41,000 1

Countries ranked near Netherlands

  1. 76 Guatemala 43,000 compare
  2. 77 Ecuador 42,000 compare
  3. 77 El Salvador 42,000 compare
  4. 79 Mali 41,000 compare
  5. 81 Yemen 40,000 compare
  6. 82 Bulgaria 37,000 compare
  7. 82 Lithuania 37,000 compare

See the full ranking of 219 places →

More public sector data for Netherlands

All data for Netherlands →

Frequently asked questions

What is armed forces personnel, total in Netherlands?
Armed forces personnel, total in Netherlands was 41,000 in 2020, according to The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
What is the highest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Netherlands?
The highest recorded value was 106,000 in 1989.
What is the lowest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Netherlands?
The lowest recorded value was 41,000 in 2007.
How does Netherlands rank for armed forces personnel, total?
Netherlands ranks 79th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
Is armed forces personnel, total rising or falling in Netherlands?
Over the last ten years it is down 5.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Netherlands 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

Indicator
Armed forces personnel, total
Source
The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
219 places, 6,823 data points, 1985–2020
Last refreshed

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.