Government spending on defence
Total general government expenditure on defence (COFOG division 02: military and civil defence, foreign military aid), as a percentage of GDP, in national accounts. It can differ from NATO's definition of defence spending.
30 countries have a value for 2024, the latest period with data for most countries. Some countries have newer figures; see the ranking below for each country's latest year.
Trend over time
The chart loads when you scroll to it. The table below shows the same data.
The chart shows a calculation from the published values. The table below keeps the published values.
% of GDP. Source: Eurostat. Gaps mean no published value; points are not joined across missing years.
| Period | European Union | Germany | France | Spain |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 1.5% | 1.4%p (provisional) | 1.9%p (provisional) | 0.9%p (provisional) |
| 2023 | 1.3% | 1.2%p (provisional) | 1.8%p (provisional) | 0.9% |
| 2022 | 1.3% | 1.2%p (provisional) | 1.8% | 1.1% |
| 2021 | 1.3% | 1.1% | 1.7% | 0.9% |
| 2020 | 1.3% | 1.1% | 1.9% | 0.9% |
| 2019 | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.7% | 0.8% |
| 2018 | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.8% | 0.8% |
| 2017 | 1.2% | 1.0% | 1.8% | 0.9% |
| 2016 | 1.2% | 1.0% | 2.0% | 1.0% |
| 2015 | 1.2% | 0.9% | 1.7% | 1.0% |
| 2014 | 1.1% | 0.9% | 1.7% | 0.9% |
| 2013 | 1.2% | 1.0% | 1.8% | 1.0% |
| 2012 | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.8% | 0.9% |
| 2011 | 1.3% | 1.0% | 1.8% | 1.0% |
| 2010 | 1.4% | 1.0% | 2.0% | 1.0% |
| 2009 | – | 1.1% | 1.9% | 1.0% |
| 2008 | – | 0.9% | 1.8% | 1.0% |
| 2007 | – | 0.9% | 1.8% | 1.0% |
| 2006 | – | 1.1% | 1.8% | 1.0% |
| 2005 | – | 1.1% | 1.8% | 1.1% |
| 2004 | – | 1.0% | 1.8% | 1.1% |
| 2003 | – | 1.1% | 1.8% | 1.0% |
| 2002 | – | 1.1% | 2.0% | 1.1% |
| 2001 | – | 1.1% | 2.0% | 1.1% |
Flags: p provisional . A dash means no value was published.
In short
- Among the 30 countries with a value for 2024, the highest is Estonia (3.7%) and the lowest Ireland (0.1%).
- Half of the countries are above 1.5% and half below.
- From 2023 to 2024 the value rose in 21 countries and fell in 2.
- The figure for the European Union was 1.5% in 2024, against 1.2% in 2019 (+0.3 percentage points).
About this measure
Before comparing
- National accounts definitions differ from NATO's defence expenditure figures.
Source and dates
All countries in 2024 Every value is for 2024, so the countries are compared at the same point in time.
- 1 Estonia 3.7%
- 2 Poland 2.9%
- 3 Latvia 2.7%
- 4 Lithuania 2.6%
- 5 Greece 2.2%
- 6 Norway 2.1%
- 7 Hungary 2.0%
- 8 France 1.9%p (provisional)
- 9 Sweden 1.9%
- 10 Cyprus 1.8%
- 11 Denmark 1.8%
- 12 Finland 1.6%
- 13 Netherlands 1.6%
- 14 Romania 1.6%
- 15 Croatia 1.5%
- 16 Germany 1.4%p (provisional)
- 17 Slovakia 1.4%p (provisional)
- 18 Slovenia 1.4%
- 19 Belgium 1.3%p (provisional)
- 20 Bulgaria 1.3%
- 21 Czechia 1.3%
- 22 Italy 1.3%
- 23 Portugal 0.9%p (provisional)
- 24 Spain 0.9%p (provisional)
- 25 Switzerland 0.8%
- 26 Austria 0.7%
- 27 Luxembourg 0.7%
- 28 Malta 0.5%
- 29 Iceland 0.2%
- 30 Ireland 0.1%
- European Union 1.5%
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Grey: no value for 2024. Colour groups split countries into roughly equal numbers. Boundaries: Natural Earth.