Armed forces, percent of labor force - Country rankings
* indicates monthly or quarterly data series
Armed forces personnel, percent of the labor force, 2020:
The average for 2020 based on 27 countries was 0.97 percent. The highest value was in Greece: 3.2 percent and the lowest value was in Sweden: 0.27 percent. The indicator is available from 1990 to 2020. Below is a chart for all countries where data are available.Measure: percent; Source: International Institute for Strategic Studies
Select indicator
* indicates monthly or quarterly data series
| Countries | Armed forces, percent of labor force, 2020 | Global rank | Available data |
|---|---|---|---|
| Greece | 3.2 | 1 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Lithuania | 2.48 | 2 | 1992 - 2020 |
| Cyprus | 1.81 | 3 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Romania | 1.52 | 4 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Italy | 1.35 | 5 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Bulgaria | 1.18 | 6 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Croatia | 1.17 | 7 | 1992 - 2020 |
| Poland | 1.04 | 8 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Portugal | 1.01 | 9 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Estonia | 1 | 10 | 1992 - 2020 |
| France | 1 | 11 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Hungary | 0.95 | 12 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Latvia | 0.92 | 13 | 1992 - 2020 |
| Spain | 0.87 | 14 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Finland | 0.8 | 15 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Malta | 0.72 | 16 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Slovenia | 0.68 | 17 | 1992 - 2020 |
| Slovakia | 0.67 | 18 | 1993 - 2020 |
| Czechia | 0.51 | 19 | 1993 - 2020 |
| Austria | 0.5 | 20 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Denmark | 0.49 | 21 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Belgium | 0.47 | 22 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Germany | 0.42 | 23 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Netherlands | 0.42 | 24 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Ireland | 0.37 | 25 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Luxembourg | 0.31 | 26 | 1990 - 2020 |
| Sweden | 0.27 | 27 | 1990 - 2020 |
Definition: 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. Labor force comprises all people who meet the International Labour Organization's definition of the economically active population.
Selected articles from our guide:
Are trade deficits bad for the economy?
Sources of economic growth
Currency values and investment returns
How to write an economics research paper
All articles
3.20
2.48
1.81
1.52
1.35
1.18
1.17
1.04
1.01
1.00
1.00
0.95
0.92
0.87
0.80
0.72
0.68
0.67
0.51
0.50
0.49
0.47
0.42
0.42
0.37
0.31
0.27
0
0.8
1.6
2.4
3.2
Armed forces, percent of labor force around the world Armed forces, percent of labor force in Europe Armed forces, percent of labor force in Asia Armed forces, percent of labor force in Africa Armed forces, percent of labor force in North America Armed forces, percent of labor force in South America Armed forces, percent of labor force in Australia/Oceania Armed forces, percent of labor force in Sub Sahara Africa Armed forces, percent of labor force in MENA Armed forces, percent of labor force in South East Asia Armed forces, percent of labor force in Latin America