Which countries have the largest armies on Earth? The best defense is often a good offense, and nothing screams offense like a suitably large military. Today’s list looks at the biggest military forces on the planet.
#20: Saudi Arabia
- Active Personnel: 257,000
- Reserve Personnel: 0
- Total Armed Forces: 257,000
#19: Colombia
- Active Personnel: 293,200
- Reserve Personnel: 35,000
- Total Armed Forces: 328,200
#18: Sri Lanka
- Active Personnel: 346,000
- Reserve Personnel: 90,000
- Total Armed Forces: 436,000
#17: Algeria
- Active Personnel: 325,000
- Reserve Personnel: 135,000
- Total Armed Forces: 460,000
#16: Mexico
- Active Personnel: 412,000
- Reserve Personnel: 98,655
- Total Armed Forces: 510,655
#15: Thailand
- Active Personnel: 360,850
- Reserve Personnel: 200,000
- Total Armed Forces: 560,850
#14: Brazil
- Active Personnel: 360,000
- Reserve Personnel: 340,000
- Total Armed Forces: 700,000
#13: Turkey
- Active Personnel: 355,200
- Reserve Personnel: 378,700
- Total Armed Forces: 733,900
#12: Indonesia
- Active Personnel: 400,000
- Reserve Personnel: 400,000
- Total Armed Forces: 800,000
#11: Egypt
- Active Personnel: 440,000
- Reserve Personnel: 480,000
- Total Armed Forces: 920,000
#10: Iran
- Active Personnel: 610,000
- Reserve Personnel: 350,000
- Total Armed Forces: 960,000
#9: Pakistan
- Active Personnel: 654,000
- Reserve Personnel: 550,000
- Total Armed Forces: 1,204,000
#8: North Korea
- Active Personnel: 1,320,000
- Reserve Personnel: 560,000
- Total Armed Forces: 1,880,000
#7: Ukraine
- Active Personnel: 900,000
- Reserve Personnel: 1,200,000
- Total Armed Forces: 2,100,000
#6: United States of America
- Active Personnel: 1,326,000
- Reserve Personnel: 799,500
- Total Armed Forces: 2,125,500
#5: China
- Active Personnel: 2,035,000
- Reserve Personnel: 510,000
- Total Armed Forces: 2,545,000
#4: India
- Active Personnel: 1,455,550
- Reserve Personnel: 1,155,000
- Total Armed Forces: 2,610,550
#3: Russia
- Active Personnel: 1,320,000
- Reserve Personnel: 2,000,000
- Total Armed Forces: 3,320,000
#2: South Korea
- Active Personnel: 600,000
- Reserve Personnel: 3,100,000
- Total Armed Forces: 3,700,000
#1: Vietnam
- Active Personnel: 600,000
- Reserve Personnel: 5,000,000
- Total Armed Forces: 5,600,000
The image featured at the top of this post is ©InnaBelikova/Shutterstock.com.
