Military Spending by Country in 1961
In 1961, United States had the world's largest military budget at $523.1 billion, while Jordan spent the highest share of its economy on defense at 16.5% of GDP.
Data updated: July 7, 2026
Full ranking
| Rank | Country | USD (millions) | Percent of GDP |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States | $523,074M | 9.16% |
| 2 | United Kingdom | $53,781M | 6.92% |
| 3 | Germany | $36,474M | 3.72% |
| 4 | France | $33,665M | 5.30% |
| 5 | Canada | $12,743M | 4.13% |
| 6 | Italy | $11,332M | 2.57% |
| 7 | Netherlands | $8,418M | 4.09% |
| 8 | Japan | $6,805M | 0.92% |
| 9 | Switzerland | $5,082M | 2.47% |
| 10 | Australia | $4,894M | 2.42% |
| 11 | Belgium | $4,750M | 3.26% |
| 12 | Spain | $4,261M | 2.03% |
| 13 | Sweden | $4,030M | 3.72% |
| 14 | India | $3,669M | 2.07% |
| 15 | Argentina | $3,536M | 2.14% |
| 16 | Denmark | $2,555M | 2.59% |
| 17 | Sudan | $2,102M | 1.84% |
| 18 | Portugal | $2,016M | 3.89% |
| 19 | Norway | $1,729M | 3.00% |
| 20 | Peru | $1,700M | 2.64% |
| 21 | Brazil | $1,689M | 2.36% |
| 22 | Greece | $1,664M | 4.24% |
| 23 | Israel | $1,510M | 7.87% |
| 24 | Austria | $1,496M | 1.31% |
| 25 | Turkey | $1,441M | 3.76% |
| 26 | Ecuador | $1,401M | 2.05% |
| 27 | New Zealand | $1,159M | 2.49% |
| 28 | Finland | $1,009M | 1.84% |
| 29 | Mexico | $831M | 0.65% |
| 30 | South Korea | $804M | 6.73% |
| 31 | Pakistan | $660M | 4.10% |
| 32 | Philippines | $632M | 1.70% |
| 33 | Colombia | $507M | 2.14% |
| 34 | South Africa | $488M | 1.47% |
| 35 | Myanmar | $437M | 6.12% |
| 36 | Thailand | $396M | 2.10% |
| 37 | Iran | $337M | 2.35% |
| 38 | Ireland | $330M | 1.32% |
| 39 | Iraq | $328M | 6.85% |
| 40 | Morocco | $315M | 2.70% |
| 41 | Chile | $278M | 3.53% |
| 42 | Dominican Republic | $244M | 5.23% |
| 43 | Malaysia | $177M | 2.23% |
| 44 | Guatemala | $160M | 1.12% |
| 45 | Nigeria | $136M | 0.85% |
| 46 | Ghana | $116M | 2.10% |
| 47 | El Salvador | $87M | — |
| 48 | Tunisia | $81M | 2.22% |
| 49 | Luxembourg | $61M | 1.11% |
| 50 | Bolivia | $58M | 1.20% |
| 51 | Sri Lanka | $55M | 1.18% |
| 52 | Paraguay | $45M | 2.28% |
| 53 | Honduras | $39M | 1.08% |
| 54 | Somalia | $30M | 0.23% |
| 55 | Sierra Leone | $12M | 0.73% |
| 56 | Burkina Faso | $7M | 0.83% |
| 57 | Costa Rica | $0M | 0.00% |
| 58 | Iceland | $0M | 0.00% |
| 59 | Jordan | — | 16.51% |
| 60 | Syria | — | 9.54% |
| 61 | Mali | — | 2.70% |
| 62 | Ethiopia | — | 1.86% |
| 63 | Libya | — | 1.86% |
| 64 | Madagascar | — | 1.50% |
| 65 | Venezuela | — | 1.42% |
| 66 | Benin | — | 1.40% |
| 67 | Togo | — | 0.27% |
Data source: SIPRI Military Expenditure Database. Values are in constant 2024 US dollars.