Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure) in Nicaragua
Nicaragua: Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure) was 2.0% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Military expenditure in Nicaragua, 2000–2025
Source: SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Measured in % of general government expenditure.
Analysis
Nicaragua recorded 2.0% for military expenditure in 2025.
The figure is up 0.7% on the previous year and down 32.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military expenditure in Nicaragua peaked at 3.6% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 1.8%, in 2021.
Nicaragua ranks 150th of 164 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 26 years of available data.
Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure) in Nicaragua, year by year
| Year | % of general government expenditure | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 2.9% | — |
| 2001 | 2.7% | -6.6% |
| 2002 | 3.6% | +29.9% |
| 2003 | 3.2% | -10.8% |
| 2004 | 2.7% | -14.8% |
| 2005 | 2.5% | -6.2% |
| 2006 | 2.6% | +1.7% |
| 2007 | 2.5% | -4.1% |
| 2008 | 2.3% | -7.3% |
| 2009 | 2.2% | -3.7% |
| 2010 | 2.2% | +1.2% |
| 2011 | 2.2% | -0.0% |
| 2012 | 2.8% | +23.6% |
| 2013 | 2.8% | +1.4% |
| 2014 | 2.8% | -0.6% |
| 2015 | 3.0% | +9.4% |
| 2016 | 2.4% | -21.8% |
| 2017 | 2.3% | -3.8% |
| 2018 | 2.3% | -1.2% |
| 2019 | 2.2% | -4.1% |
| 2020 | 2.2% | -0.6% |
| 2021 | 1.8% | -16.3% |
| 2022 | 1.9% | +4.3% |
| 2023 | 2.1% | +13.2% |
| 2024 | 2.0% | -4.6% |
| 2025 | 2.0% | +0.7% |
Nicaragua compared with similar countries
- Nicaragua's 2.0% is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 5.8%, 35% of the median. (39 countries reporting)
- Nicaragua's 2.0% is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 3.7%, 56% of the median. (22 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure) in Nicaragua 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | +29.9% | 2.7% | 3.6% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 2.7% | 2.2% | 3.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.5% | 2.2% | 3.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.0% | 1.8% | 2.2% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Nicaragua
- 147 South Africa 2.2% compare
- 148 Gambia 2.2% compare
- 149 Kazakhstan 2.1% compare
- 151 Austria 2.0% compare
- 152 Argentina 1.8% compare
- 153 Luxembourg 1.8% compare
More public sector data for Nicaragua
- 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 13.00 million SIPRI trend indicator values (2019)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per capita 2.01 SIPRI trend indicator values per person (2019)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), per unit of GDP 0.001 SIPRI trend indicator values per US$ of GDP (2019)
- Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values), annual growth rate -91.86 % change on previous year (2017)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military expenditure in Nicaragua?
- Military expenditure in Nicaragua was 2.0% in 2025, according to SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
- What is the highest military expenditure recorded in Nicaragua?
- The highest recorded value was 3.6% in 2002.
- What is the lowest military expenditure recorded in Nicaragua?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.8% in 2021.
- How does Nicaragua rank for military expenditure?
- Nicaragua ranks 150th out of 164 countries with data for 2025.
- Is military expenditure rising or falling in Nicaragua?
- Over the last ten years it is down 32.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Nicaragua data come from?
- The figures come from SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), published as part of Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Military expenditure expressed as a percentage of general government expenditure