Armed forces personnel, total in North America
North America: Armed forces personnel, total was 1.47 million in 2020. ▼ Falling
Armed forces personnel, total in North America, 1985–2020
Source: The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
Analysis
In 2020, armed forces personnel, total in North America stood at 1.47 million.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.5% on the previous year and down 10.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel, total in North America peaked at 2.33 million in 1989 and was at its lowest, 1.41 million, in 2015.
That places North America 37th out of 46 groups with data for 2020, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 33 years of available data.
Armed forces personnel, total in North America, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 2.23 million | — |
| 1989 | 2.33 million | +4.2% |
| 1990 | 2.27 million | -2.6% |
| 1991 | 2.21 million | -2.7% |
| 1992 | 2.00 million | -9.2% |
| 1993 | 1.90 million | -5.3% |
| 1994 | 1.79 million | -5.3% |
| 1995 | 1.71 million | -4.7% |
| 1996 | 1.65 million | -3.5% |
| 1997 | 1.61 million | -2.8% |
| 1998 | 1.66 million | +3.6% |
| 1999 | 1.64 million | -1.1% |
| 2000 | 1.52 million | -7.4% |
| 2001 | 1.49 million | -2.4% |
| 2002 | 1.53 million | +2.8% |
| 2003 | 1.54 million | +0.9% |
| 2004 | 1.54 million | +0.2% |
| 2005 | 1.62 million | +4.7% |
| 2006 | 1.56 million | -3.4% |
| 2007 | 1.62 million | +3.6% |
| 2008 | 1.60 million | -0.9% |
| 2009 | 1.63 million | +1.6% |
| 2010 | 1.64 million | +0.3% |
| 2011 | 1.59 million | -3.0% |
| 2012 | 1.56 million | -1.7% |
| 2013 | 1.50 million | -3.8% |
| 2014 | 1.45 million | -3.2% |
| 2015 | 1.41 million | -2.5% |
| 2016 | 1.42 million | +0.1% |
| 2017 | 1.43 million | +1.1% |
| 2018 | 1.45 million | +1.5% |
| 2019 | 1.46 million | +0.5% |
| 2020 | 1.47 million | +0.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 2.28 million | 2.23 million | 2.33 million | 2 |
| 1990s | 1.84 million | 1.61 million | 2.27 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.57 million | 1.49 million | 1.63 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.49 million | 1.41 million | 1.64 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.47 million | 1.47 million | 1.47 million | 1 |
Countries ranked near North America
More public sector data for North America
- Arms imports 1.36 billion SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 3.56 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate 56.45 % change on previous year (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), gaps filled 1.36 billion SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per capita 2,692 current USD per person (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), per unit of GDP 0.0325 current USD per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), annual growth rate 8.84 % change on previous year (2024)
- Military expenditure (current USD), gaps filled 1.03 trillion current USD (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per square kilometre 48.39 SIPRI trend indicator values per square kilometre (2023)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel, total in North America?
- Armed forces personnel, total in North America 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 America?
- The highest recorded value was 2.33 million in 1989.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel, total recorded in North America?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.41 million in 2015.
- How does North America rank for armed forces personnel, total?
- North America ranks 37th out of 46 groups with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel, total rising or falling in North America?
- Over the last ten years it is down 10.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this North America 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.