Armed forces personnel, total in Paraguay

Paraguay: Armed forces personnel, total was 29,000 in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
29,000
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
88th
of 173 countries
All-time high
35,000
in 1996
All-time low
14,400
in 1985
Years of data
33
1985–2020

Armed forces personnel, total in Paraguay, 1985–2020

010.0k20.0k30.0k40.0k1985200220201985: 14.4k1989: 16.0k1990: 16.0k1991: 16.0k1992: 16.0k1993: 16.0k1994: 16.0k1995: 28.3k1996: 35.0k1997: 35.0k1998: 35.0k1999: 35.0k2000: 35.0k2001: 33.4k2002: 33.4k2003: 33.4k2004: 24.0k2005: 25.0k2006: 26.0k2007: 26.0k2008: 26.0k2009: 25.4k2010: 25.4k2011: 25.4k2012: 25.4k2013: 25.4k2014: 25.4k2015: 25.4k2016: 25.4k2017: 27.0k2018: 28.9k2019: 29.0k2020: 29.0k

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

Analysis

In 2020, armed forces personnel, total in Paraguay stood at 29,000.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 13.9% over ten years.

Over the whole period, armed forces personnel, total in Paraguay peaked at 35,000 in 1996 and was at its lowest, 14,400, in 1985.

That places Paraguay 88th out of 173 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.

Armed forces personnel, total in Paraguay, year by year

Annual values for Armed forces personnel, total in Paraguay, 1985 to 2020.
Year Value Change
1985 14,400
1989 16,000 +11.1%
1990 16,000 +0.0%
1991 16,000 +0.0%
1992 16,000 +0.0%
1993 16,000 +0.0%
1994 16,000 +0.0%
1995 28,300 +76.9%
1996 35,000 +23.7%
1997 35,000 +0.0%
1998 35,000 +0.0%
1999 35,000 +0.0%
2000 35,000 +0.0%
2001 33,400 -4.6%
2002 33,400 +0.0%
2003 33,400 +0.0%
2004 24,000 -28.1%
2005 25,000 +4.2%
2006 26,000 +4.0%
2007 26,000 +0.0%
2008 26,000 +0.0%
2009 25,450 -2.1%
2010 25,450 +0.0%
2011 25,450 +0.0%
2012 25,450 +0.0%
2013 25,450 +0.0%
2014 25,450 +0.0%
2015 25,450 +0.0%
2016 25,450 +0.0%
2017 27,000 +6.1%
2018 28,950 +7.2%
2019 29,000 +0.2%
2020 29,000 +0.0%

Paraguay compared with similar countries

  • Paraguay's 29,000 is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 64,000, 45% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
  • Paraguay's 29,000 is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 28,500, 1.0× the median. (28 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 15,200 14,400 16,000 2
1990s 24,830 16,000 35,000 10
2000s 28,765 24,000 35,000 10
2010s 26,310 25,450 29,000 10
2020s 29,000 29,000 29,000 1

Countries ranked near Paraguay

  1. 85 Cameroon 34,000 compare
  2. 86 Serbia 32,000 compare
  3. 87 Burundi 31,000 compare
  4. 89 Panama 28,000 compare
  5. 89 Tanzania 28,000 compare
  6. 91 Cote d'Ivoire 27,000 compare
  7. 91 Czechia 27,000 compare

See the full ranking of 219 places →

More public sector data for Paraguay

All data for Paraguay →

Frequently asked questions

What is armed forces personnel, total in Paraguay?
Armed forces personnel, total in Paraguay was 29,000 in 2020, according to The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
What is the highest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Paraguay?
The highest recorded value was 35,000 in 1996.
What is the lowest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Paraguay?
The lowest recorded value was 14,400 in 1985.
How does Paraguay rank for armed forces personnel, total?
Paraguay ranks 88th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
Is armed forces personnel, total rising or falling in Paraguay?
Over the last ten years it is up 13.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Paraguay 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.

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Armed forces personnel, total in Paraguay. Statizoid, drawing on The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies. Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://public-sector.statizoid.com/stat/armed-forces-personnel-total/paraguay/

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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.