Military expenditure (% of GDP) in Mexico
Mexico: Military expenditure (% of GDP) was 0.7% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Military expenditure in Mexico, 1960–2025
Source: SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
The most recent figure for military expenditure in Mexico is 0.7%, measured in 2025.
The figure is down 34.5% on the previous year and up 63.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military expenditure in Mexico peaked at 1.1% in 2024 and was at its lowest, 0.3%, in 2006.
Mexico ranks 144th of 167 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Military expenditure (% of GDP) in Mexico, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 0.7% | — |
| 1961 | 0.7% | -3.2% |
| 1962 | 0.7% | +5.8% |
| 1963 | 0.7% | +4.2% |
| 1964 | 0.7% | -5.7% |
| 1965 | 0.6% | -12.7% |
| 1966 | 0.6% | -2.5% |
| 1967 | 0.5% | -5.4% |
| 1968 | 0.5% | +0.6% |
| 1969 | 0.6% | +9.4% |
| 1970 | 0.5% | -17.1% |
| 1971 | 0.5% | -2.0% |
| 1972 | 0.5% | +10.0% |
| 1973 | 0.5% | +1.4% |
| 1974 | 0.6% | +4.0% |
| 1975 | 0.6% | +1.4% |
| 1976 | 0.6% | +4.3% |
| 1977 | 0.5% | -10.7% |
| 1978 | 0.5% | -5.5% |
| 1979 | 0.5% | +0.1% |
| 1980 | 0.4% | -17.7% |
| 1981 | 0.5% | +23.4% |
| 1982 | 0.5% | -3.5% |
| 1983 | 0.5% | +5.5% |
| 1984 | 0.7% | +26.2% |
| 1985 | 0.7% | +2.5% |
| 1986 | 0.6% | -6.2% |
| 1987 | 0.6% | -8.6% |
| 1988 | 0.5% | -7.6% |
| 1989 | 0.5% | -3.5% |
| 1990 | 0.4% | -16.3% |
| 1991 | 0.4% | +0.5% |
| 1992 | 0.5% | +7.8% |
| 1993 | 0.4% | -14.7% |
| 1994 | 0.5% | +18.9% |
| 1995 | 0.4% | -13.6% |
| 1996 | 0.4% | +6.0% |
| 1997 | 0.4% | -4.2% |
| 1998 | 0.4% | -2.7% |
| 1999 | 0.4% | +3.5% |
| 2000 | 0.4% | -2.8% |
| 2001 | 0.4% | -0.7% |
| 2002 | 0.4% | -3.5% |
| 2003 | 0.4% | -1.2% |
| 2004 | 0.3% | -9.9% |
| 2005 | 0.3% | -2.3% |
| 2006 | 0.3% | -12.6% |
| 2007 | 0.4% | +28.8% |
| 2008 | 0.4% | -2.6% |
| 2009 | 0.5% | +28.2% |
| 2010 | 0.4% | -9.5% |
| 2011 | 0.4% | +3.3% |
| 2012 | 0.5% | +1.8% |
| 2013 | 0.5% | +7.1% |
| 2014 | 0.5% | +1.6% |
| 2015 | 0.5% | -9.0% |
| 2016 | 0.5% | +6.5% |
| 2017 | 0.4% | -11.5% |
| 2018 | 0.5% | +9.4% |
| 2019 | 0.5% | +9.6% |
| 2020 | 0.7% | +40.9% |
| 2021 | 0.7% | -8.1% |
| 2022 | 0.7% | +4.0% |
| 2023 | 0.7% | -3.7% |
| 2024 | 1.1% | +70.4% |
| 2025 | 0.7% | -34.5% |
Mexico compared with similar countries
- Mexico's 0.7% is below the median for upper middle income countries, which is 1.4%, 52% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
- Mexico's 0.7% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 1.0%, 74% of the median. (24 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Military expenditure (% of GDP) in Mexico 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | +70.4% | 0.7% | 1.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.7% | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 0.6% | 0.4% | 0.7% | 10 |
| 1990s | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.4% | 0.3% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.8% | 0.7% | 1.1% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Mexico
- 141 Cote d'Ivoire 0.8% compare
- 142 Switzerland 0.8% compare
- 143 South Africa 0.7% compare
- 145 Bosnia and Herzegovina 0.7% compare
- 146 Cape Verde 0.7% compare
- 147 Madagascar 0.6% compare
More public sector data for Mexico
- Democracy, 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)
- Elected parliament, 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)
- Arms imports 9.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2025)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 0.3515 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 -98.76 % change on previous year (2021)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military expenditure in Mexico?
- Military expenditure in Mexico was 0.7% in 2025, according to SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
- What is the highest military expenditure recorded in Mexico?
- The highest recorded value was 1.1% in 2024.
- What is the lowest military expenditure recorded in Mexico?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3% in 2006.
- How does Mexico rank for military expenditure?
- Mexico ranks 144th out of 167 countries with data for 2025.
- Is military expenditure rising or falling in Mexico?
- Over the last ten years it is up 63.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Mexico data come from?
- The figures come from SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), published as part of Military expenditure (% of GDP). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Military expenditure by country as percentage of gross domestic product