Total US Military Spending 2025: $929.2bn, 3.12% of GDP
The US spent $929.2bn on its military in 2025 per SIPRI — 3.12% of GDP, #1 globally, and down 7.5% from 2024.
Key takeaways
- SIPRI puts total US military spending at $929.2bn in 2025 — 3.12% of GDP and the largest defense budget of any country.
- Spending fell 7.5% year-on-year in 2025, though the 10-year trend is still slightly positive at +1.03% CAGR.
- The US accounts for 33.911% of a $2,740.0bn world total military spending in 2025 — our calculation from SIPRI country-level data, not SIPRI's own published total, covering 173 reporting countries.
- The 2025 figure sits about 12.5% below the 2010 historical peak of $1,061.7bn.
- SIPRI's constant-dollar total differs from the US national-budget topline and the NATO-definition figure because each uses a different scope and accounting basis.
Verdict
SIPRI's constant-dollar data puts total US military spending at $929.2bn in 2025 (3.12% of GDP), still the world's largest defense budget by a wide margin despite a 7.5% year-on-year decline. Readers citing this figure should note it is SIPRI's constant-2024-dollar estimate, data as of July 7, 2026, not the US national-budget topline or NATO's broader-scope definition, which will show different totals for the same year. The $2,740.0bn world total and 33.911% world share cited above are our calculation from SIPRI country-level data — not SIPRI's own published total.
At a glance
| Total spending, 2025 | $929.2bnSIPRI constant 2024 US dollars |
|---|---|
| Share of GDP | 3.12% |
| Global rank | #1 |
| Year-on-year change | -7.5% |
| World share | 33.911%of $2,740.0bn world total; our calculation from SIPRI country-level data, not SIPRI's own published total, covering 173 countries |
| Historical peak | $1,061.7bn (2010) |
SIPRI's constant-dollar data puts total US military spending at $929.2bn in 2025, equal to 3.12% of GDP. That is the largest military budget of any country in the world, though it sits 7.5% below the prior year and roughly 12.5% below the all-time peak set in 2010.
01 Total US Military Spending in 2025: The Headline Number
The figure comes from SIPRI's constant-2024-US-dollar series, which strips out inflation and exchange-rate noise so spending can be compared across years and countries on a like-for-like basis. On that basis, the United States spent $929.2bn on its military in 2025 — 3.12% of GDP, and the single largest national defense budget in the SIPRI dataset.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Total spending, 2025 | $929.2bn |
| Share of GDP | 3.12% |
| Global rank | #1 |
This is a country-level figure published directly in SIPRI's dataset, not an aggregate we have built — unlike the world-total and world-share figures used later on this page, which are our own calculations from SIPRI's country-by-country data.
02 Why the Number Fell: -7.5% Year-on-Year and the Longer-Term Trend
US military spending fell 7.5% year-on-year in 2025 in constant-dollar terms. Viewed over longer windows, the trend is closer to flat than to sustained growth or sustained decline: the five-year compound annual growth rate is -0.3%, and the ten-year compound annual growth rate is +1.03%.
| Window | Change |
|---|---|
| Year-on-year (2024 → 2025) | -7.5% |
| 5-year CAGR | -0.3% |
| 10-year CAGR | +1.03% |
Read together, these numbers describe a budget that grew modestly over the past decade but pulled back sharply in the most recent year, rather than one on a steady upward or downward path.
03 US Spending vs. the World: Rank #1 and a 33.9% Share
At $929.2bn, the United States ranks #1 globally on SIPRI's constant-dollar measure and accounts for 33.911% of a $2,740.0bn world total military spending in 2025, per our aggregates.ts worldTotal()/worldShare() calculation. Our calculation from SIPRI country-level data. Not SIPRI's own published total. Coverage: 173 countries reporting military expenditure data to SIPRI for 2025; countries with no publicly available data for the year (including North Korea) are excluded from both the world total and this share.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| US share of world spending | 33.911% |
| World total, 2025 | $2,740.0bn |
| US global rank | #1 |
Being the world's largest military spender is a statement about scale, not a judgment about strength, safety, or effectiveness — those depend on force structure, alliances, and capability, none of which this figure captures.
04 SIPRI vs. National Budget vs. NATO: Reconciling the Three Totals
Searches for "total US military spending" often surface three different numbers, and they are not interchangeable. SIPRI's $929.2bn constant-dollar figure covers military-related expenditure using SIPRI's own definition and methodology, converted to a fixed price base so it can be compared across years. The US federal government's own "national defense" budget topline is built on a different accounting basis and scope, tied to specific budget functions and current-year dollars rather than SIPRI's constant-price series. NATO's defense-spending definition is broader still in some respects — it includes categories such as military pensions and certain veterans' costs that SIPRI's methodology treats differently — which is why NATO's published figure for the US typically differs from both of the others.
The $929.2bn figure on this page is SIPRI's constant-2024-dollar estimate, data as of July 7, 2026. National-budget toplines and NATO-definition totals for the United States use different scope and accounting conventions and will not match this number — neither is "wrong," they are measuring different things. The $2,740.0bn world total and 33.911% world share are our calculation from SIPRI country-level data, not SIPRI's own published total, covering 173 reporting countries for 2025.
For consistent year-to-year and country-to-country comparison, SIPRI's constant-dollar series is the standard reference — which is why it is the figure used throughout this analysis.
05 Historical Peak: How 2025 Compares to 2010's $1,061.7bn
US military spending has not returned to its historical high. SIPRI's data puts the peak year at 2010, when spending reached $1,061.7bn in constant-2024 dollars. The 2025 figure of $929.2bn is roughly 12.5% below that peak, even after accounting for the modest growth captured in the ten-year CAGR of +1.03%.
| Year | Spending |
|---|---|
| 2010 (peak) | $1,061.7bn |
| 2025 (latest) | $929.2bn |
The gap between the 2010 peak and the 2025 figure is a useful check against any assumption that US military spending has been climbing without interruption — on SIPRI's constant-dollar measure, it has not yet closed the distance to its 2010 high.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How much does the US spend on its military in 2025?
- SIPRI's constant-2024-dollar data puts total US military spending at $929.2bn in 2025, equal to 3.12% of GDP.
- Is US military spending going up or down?
- It fell 7.5% year-on-year in 2025. Over longer windows the trend is close to flat: -0.3% CAGR over 5 years and +1.03% CAGR over 10 years.
- What share of world military spending does the US account for?
- The US accounts for 33.911% of a $2,740.0bn world total in 2025. This world total and share are our calculation from SIPRI's country-level data, not SIPRI's own published total, and cover 173 countries reporting expenditure data for 2025; countries without publicly available data are excluded.
- Why does this number differ from the US defense budget topline or NATO's figure?
- SIPRI's $929.2bn is a constant-dollar estimate using SIPRI's own scope and methodology. The US national-budget topline uses current-year dollars and different budget-function accounting, and NATO's definition includes some additional categories such as military pensions — so all three figures measure similar but not identical things.
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.