Africa Military Spending 2025: $55.1bn Total, by Country
A country-by-country look at how much Africa's 47 SIPRI-tracked states spent on defense in 2025, and who drives the regional total.
Key takeaways
- Africa's 47 SIPRI-tracked countries spent $55.1bn on defense in 2025, about 2% of world military spending.
- Algeria is the region's largest spender at $24.1bn, 43.8% of the Africa total.
- Morocco ranks second at $5.9bn (10.7%), less than a quarter of Algeria's spending.
- The top three spenders — Algeria, Morocco, and South Africa — together account for nearly 60% of Africa's total.
- The total covers only the 47 countries SIPRI reports for 2025; countries without a 2025 figure are excluded.
Verdict
Africa's 47 SIPRI-tracked countries spent $55.1bn on defense in 2025, about 2% of world military spending, with Algeria alone accounting for 43.8% of the total at $24.1bn. This figure is our calculation from SIPRI country-level data — the sum of the 47 Africa countries SIPRI reports for 2025, excluding any country without a 2025 figure.
At a glance
| Africa total military spending, 2025 | $55.1bnSum of 47 SIPRI-tracked countries |
|---|---|
| Share of world military spending | 2%2025 figure |
| Countries covered | 47Countries without a 2025 figure excluded |
| Largest spender | Algeria — $24.1bn43.8% of Africa total |
| Second-largest spender | Morocco — $5.9bn10.7% of Africa total |
Africa's 47 SIPRI-tracked countries spent a combined $55.1bn on defense in 2025 — about 2% of world military spending, led by Algeria at $24.1bn.
01 Africa's Total Military Spending in 2025
The 47 African countries SIPRI tracks for 2025 spent $55,111m ($55.1bn) on defense combined, in SIPRI constant 2024 US dollars. That figure is our calculation from SIPRI country-level data, not a total SIPRI itself publishes.
Sum of the 47 Africa countries SIPRI reports for 2025. Countries without a 2025 figure are excluded.
02 Africa's Share of World Military Spending
At $55.1bn, Africa accounts for roughly 2% of world military spending in 2025. That share reflects the continent's combined weight against total global defense outlays for the year, calculated from the same SIPRI country-level dataset used for the regional total above. For the full global picture, see the 2025 world rankings.
03 Top Military Spenders in Africa, Ranked
Spending is heavily concentrated at the top of the table. The eight largest spenders below account for the large majority of the continent's $55.1bn total, with shares expressed as a percentage of that regional figure.
| Rank | Country | 2025 Spending | Share of Africa Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Algeria | $24.1bn | 43.8% |
| 2 | Morocco | $5.9bn | 10.7% |
| 3 | South Africa | $3.0bn | 5.4% |
| 4 | Egypt | $2.3bn | 4.1% |
| 5 | Nigeria | $1.8bn | 3.2% |
| 6 | Kenya | $1.4bn | 2.5% |
| 7 | Tunisia | $1.4bn | 2.5% |
| 8 | Angola | $1.3bn | 2.3% |
04 Algeria: The Region's Largest Spender
Algeria is the largest reported military spender in Africa in 2025, at $24.1bn — 43.8% of the $55.1bn regional total. No other country in the dataset approaches that figure: second-place Morocco spends $5.9bn, 10.7% of the regional total, roughly a quarter of Algeria's outlay. Together, Algeria and Morocco account for more than half of all African military spending SIPRI reports for the year.
- Algeria — $24.1bn, 43.8% of Africa's $55.1bn total, the region's largest spender.
- Morocco — $5.9bn, 10.7% of the regional total, the second-largest spender.
- South Africa — $3.0bn, 5.4% of the regional total, the third-largest spender in Africa overall.
05 How This Total Is Calculated
The $55.1bn figure is the sum of 2025 military expenditure, in SIPRI constant 2024 US dollars, across all 47 African countries for which SIPRI reports a 2025 figure. It is our calculation from SIPRI country-level data, not a total published directly by SIPRI. Countries without a reported 2025 figure are excluded from both the total and the share-of-world calculation, so the true continental figure could differ from $55.1bn if complete data were available for every state.
All figures are in SIPRI constant 2024 US dollars. 2025 is a reported year, not an estimate.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How much did Africa spend on the military in 2025?
- Africa's 47 SIPRI-tracked countries spent a combined $55.1bn in 2025, in SIPRI constant 2024 US dollars.
- What share of world military spending does Africa account for?
- Africa accounts for about 2% of world military spending in 2025, based on the $55.1bn regional total.
- Which African country spends the most on its military?
- Algeria is the largest spender, at $24.1bn in 2025 — 43.8% of Africa's $55.1bn total.
- Is the $55.1bn figure published by SIPRI?
- No. It is our calculation from SIPRI country-level data, summing the 47 African countries SIPRI reports for 2025; countries without a 2025 figure are excluded.
defensebudget.org
Defense spending data, sourced from SIPRI
defensebudget.org tracks military expenditure for 160 countries using the SIPRI Military Expenditure Database. Pages are generated from that dataset and reviewed before publication.