Military expenditure (% of GDP) in New Zealand
New Zealand: Military expenditure (% of GDP) was 1.1% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Military expenditure in New Zealand, 1960–2025
Source: SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
New Zealand recorded 1.1% for military expenditure in 2025.
The figure is down 5.1% on the previous year and up 11.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military expenditure in New Zealand peaked at 3.0% in 1980 and was at its lowest, 1.0%, in 2015.
That places New Zealand 117th out of 167 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 66 years of available data.
Military expenditure (% of GDP) in New Zealand, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 2.7% | — |
| 1961 | 2.5% | -7.6% |
| 1962 | 2.3% | -7.1% |
| 1963 | 2.2% | -4.8% |
| 1964 | 2.5% | +12.5% |
| 1965 | 2.4% | -4.7% |
| 1966 | 2.6% | +12.0% |
| 1967 | 2.6% | -0.6% |
| 1968 | 2.7% | +4.0% |
| 1969 | 2.6% | -5.9% |
| 1970 | 2.6% | +2.6% |
| 1971 | 2.3% | -12.0% |
| 1972 | 2.2% | -5.8% |
| 1973 | 2.0% | -9.6% |
| 1974 | 2.1% | +4.7% |
| 1975 | 2.1% | +0.9% |
| 1976 | 1.9% | -7.1% |
| 1977 | 2.1% | +9.3% |
| 1978 | 2.2% | +4.4% |
| 1979 | 2.2% | -2.3% |
| 1980 | 3.0% | +40.0% |
| 1981 | 2.7% | -9.7% |
| 1982 | 2.6% | -5.4% |
| 1983 | 2.4% | -5.6% |
| 1984 | 2.4% | -2.5% |
| 1985 | 2.4% | -0.5% |
| 1986 | 2.4% | +0.1% |
| 1987 | 2.4% | +1.7% |
| 1988 | 2.1% | -12.1% |
| 1989 | 2.2% | +3.1% |
| 1990 | 2.3% | +6.0% |
| 1991 | 2.3% | -1.4% |
| 1992 | 2.1% | -8.0% |
| 1993 | 1.9% | -7.7% |
| 1994 | 1.9% | -4.3% |
| 1995 | 1.8% | -0.6% |
| 1996 | 1.8% | -2.7% |
| 1997 | 1.7% | -4.1% |
| 1998 | 1.7% | -0.5% |
| 1999 | 1.6% | -3.6% |
| 2000 | 1.6% | -3.1% |
| 2001 | 1.5% | -6.0% |
| 2002 | 1.4% | -6.7% |
| 2003 | 1.3% | -5.2% |
| 2004 | 1.2% | -11.4% |
| 2005 | 1.1% | -3.1% |
| 2006 | 1.2% | +8.9% |
| 2007 | 1.2% | -4.7% |
| 2008 | 1.2% | -2.5% |
| 2009 | 1.2% | +5.8% |
| 2010 | 1.2% | -0.8% |
| 2011 | 1.2% | -3.9% |
| 2012 | 1.1% | -4.0% |
| 2013 | 1.0% | -6.5% |
| 2014 | 1.0% | -4.4% |
| 2015 | 1.0% | -1.0% |
| 2016 | 1.0% | +4.8% |
| 2017 | 1.1% | +1.6% |
| 2018 | 1.1% | +5.1% |
| 2019 | 1.3% | +17.0% |
| 2020 | 1.3% | +3.6% |
| 2021 | 1.2% | -13.1% |
| 2022 | 1.2% | -0.7% |
| 2023 | 1.2% | +3.7% |
| 2024 | 1.2% | -3.2% |
| 2025 | 1.1% | -5.1% |
New Zealand compared with similar countries
- New Zealand's 1.1% is below the median for high income countries, which is 2.1%, 53% of the median. (54 countries reporting)
- New Zealand's 1.1% is below the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 1.4%, 78% of the median. (19 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Military expenditure (% of GDP) in New Zealand 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | +40.0% | 2.2% | 3.0% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 2.5% | 2.2% | 2.7% | 10 |
| 1970s | 2.2% | 1.9% | 2.6% | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.5% | 2.1% | 3.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.9% | 1.6% | 2.3% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.3% | 1.1% | 1.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.1% | 1.0% | 1.3% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.3% | 6 |
Countries ranked near New Zealand
More public sector data for New Zealand
- Democracy, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
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- Elected parliament, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
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- Arms imports 200.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 37.81 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.0008 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2024)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate -50.62 % change on previous year (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military expenditure in New Zealand?
- Military expenditure in New Zealand was 1.1% in 2025, according to SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
- What is the highest military expenditure recorded in New Zealand?
- The highest recorded value was 3.0% in 1980.
- What is the lowest military expenditure recorded in New Zealand?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.0% in 2015.
- How does New Zealand rank for military expenditure?
- New Zealand ranks 117th out of 167 countries with data for 2025.
- Is military expenditure rising or falling in New Zealand?
- Over the last ten years it is up 11.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this New Zealand 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