Armed forces personnel, total in Portugal
Portugal: Armed forces personnel, total was 52,000 in 2020. ▼ Falling
Armed forces personnel, total in Portugal, 1985–2020
Source: The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
Analysis
The most recent figure for armed forces personnel, total in Portugal is 52,000, measured in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 33 years on record.
That represents a change of down 42.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel, total in Portugal peaked at 122,000 in 1994 and was at its lowest, 52,000, in 2017.
That places Portugal 68th 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.
Armed forces personnel, total in Portugal, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 73,000 | — |
| 1989 | 104,000 | +42.5% |
| 1990 | 87,000 | -16.3% |
| 1991 | 86,000 | -1.1% |
| 1992 | 80,000 | -7.0% |
| 1993 | 68,000 | -15.0% |
| 1994 | 122,000 | +79.4% |
| 1995 | 104,000 | -14.8% |
| 1996 | 104,000 | +0.0% |
| 1997 | 100,200 | -3.7% |
| 1998 | 94,500 | -5.7% |
| 1999 | 90,600 | -4.1% |
| 2000 | 90,500 | -0.1% |
| 2001 | 90,000 | -0.6% |
| 2002 | 90,000 | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 92,600 | +2.9% |
| 2004 | 91,000 | -1.7% |
| 2005 | 93,000 | +2.2% |
| 2006 | 91,000 | -2.2% |
| 2007 | 91,000 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 91,000 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 91,040 | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 90,334 | -0.8% |
| 2011 | 90,300 | -0.0% |
| 2012 | 90,300 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 79,850 | -11.6% |
| 2014 | 78,100 | -2.2% |
| 2015 | 73,600 | -5.8% |
| 2016 | 74,500 | +1.2% |
| 2017 | 52,000 | -30.2% |
| 2018 | 52,250 | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 52,000 | -0.5% |
| 2020 | 52,000 | +0.0% |
Portugal compared with similar countries
- Portugal's 52,000 is above the median for high income countries, which is 25,000, 2.1× the median. (57 countries reporting)
- Portugal's 52,000 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 26,500, 2.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Armed forces personnel, total in Portugal changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | +79.4% | 68,000 | 122,000 |
| 1989 | +42.5% | 73,000 | 104,000 |
| 2017 | -30.2% | 74,500 | 52,000 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 88,500 | 73,000 | 104,000 | 2 |
| 1990s | 93,630 | 68,000 | 122,000 | 10 |
| 2000s | 91,114 | 90,000 | 93,000 | 10 |
| 2010s | 73,323 | 52,000 | 90,334 | 10 |
| 2020s | 52,000 | 52,000 | 52,000 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Portugal
More public sector data for Portugal
- Democracy, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- 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 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Elected parliament, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Democracy 7 (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected 1 (2025)
- Elected parliament 1 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel, total in Portugal?
- Armed forces personnel, total in Portugal was 52,000 in 2020, according to The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
- What is the highest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Portugal?
- The highest recorded value was 122,000 in 1994.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Portugal?
- The lowest recorded value was 52,000 in 2017.
- How does Portugal rank for armed forces personnel, total?
- Portugal ranks 68th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel, total rising or falling in Portugal?
- Over the last ten years it is down 42.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Portugal 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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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.