The largest militaries in the world, ranked by the number of active troops

North Korea has the fourth-largest number of active armed forces in the world. Alain Nogues/Corbis via Getty Images The US military may lead the world in budget size and in the ambitions of its warfare technology, but there is one measure by which it is outsized by other nations.Using data from the International Institute for Strategic Studies' 2026 Military Balance report, Business Insider ranked the top 25 countries by the size of their active armed forces during 2025 and listed their defense budgets that same year.Active-duty force size is a tally of a country's uniformed troops: airmen, soldiers, sailors, special operators, and Marines.Armies, in particular, depend on size to gain and occupy ground during armed conflicts.Militaries can also be a tool of domestic repression. North Korea, for example, is one of the world's most repressive states, led by a dictator who has repeatedly threatened neighboring South Korea — and it also has one of the world's largest militaries.The number of active-duty military personnel is far from the only factor that matters when comparing military power between countries, but it reflects latent power."Numbers have value, but there's a lot more to military capability," Mark Cancian, a senior advisor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington, DC-based foreign policy and national security think tank, told Business Insider.IISS, a London-headquartered think tank, counts active armed forces, reservists, and paramilitaries as separate categories in its analysis, showing a fuller picture of each nation's manpower.Some countries have significantly more reservists than others — Vietnam has the largest number in the world, estimated at 5 million — but the quality and longevity of their expertise can vary between systems."When you look at some countries' reserve numbers, you're often looking at people who haven't trained in 10 or 20 years," Cancian said. "It gives you a big number, but their military value is questionable."Even when accounting for all of a military's manpower, personnel is only one of the factors that can qualify a nation's military strength, which also includes equipment and readiness.There's also the role of technologies in global warfare, the size and sophistication of air forces and naval fleets, amphibious capabilities for landing assault forces, command-and-control systems, and nuclear forces, all of which shape military power.Still, comparing global manpower offers insight into how countries prioritize military power.See how the world's largest militaries stack up in terms of active troop numbers. 25. Iraq The Iraqi Ground Forces had an estimated 193,000 active service members in 2025. Khalil Dawood/Xinhua via Getty Images Active armed forces: 193,000Defense budget: $12.7 billion 24. Morocco The Royal Moroccan Army has an estimated 196,000 active service members. ISSOUF SANOGO/AFP via Getty Images Active armed forces: 196,000Defense budget: $7.5 billion 23. France The French Army has a defense budget of $70 billion. Ludovic MARIN / AFP via Getty Images Active armed forces: 204,000Defense budget: $70 billion 22. Japan The Japan Self-Defense Forces have an estimated 247,000 active service members. STR/JIJI Press/AFP via Getty Images Active armed forces: 247,000Defense budget: $58.9 billion 21. Saudi Arabia The Saudi Arabian Armed Forces have a defense budget of $72.5 billion. YASSER AL-ZAYYAT/AFP via Getty Images Active armed forces: 257,000Defense budget: $72.5 billion 20. Sri Lanka The Sri Lanka Armed Forces have an estimated 260,000 active service members. Pushpa Kumara/Anadolu via Getty Images Active armed forces: 260,000Defense budget: $1.4 billion 19. Colombia The Military Forces of Colombia count an estimated 285,000 active service members. RAUL ARBOLEDA/AFP via Getty Images Active armed forces: 285,000Defense budget: $8.3 billion 18. Mexico The Mexican Armed Forces have an estimated 301,000 active service members. Daniel Cardenas/Anadolu via Getty Images Active armed forces: 301,000Defense budget: $11.4 billion 17. Eritrea The country of Eritrea has 302,000 active service members in its military. credit should read STRINGER/AFP via Getty Images Active armed forces: 302,000Defense budget: Not reported 16. Turkey The Turkish Armed Forces have an estimated 379,000 reservists as of 2025. Samir Jordamovic/Anadolu via Getty Images Active armed forces: 355,000Defense budget: $21.5 billion 15. Thailand The Royal Thai Armed Forces count on an estimated 361,000 active service members. MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP via Getty Images Active armed forces: 361,000Defense budget: $5.8 billion 14. Brazil The Brazilian Armed Forces have an estimated 125,000 reservists as of 2025. Fabio Teixeira/Anadolu via Getty Images Active armed forces: 375,000Defense budget: $24.2 billion 13. Indonesia The Indonesian National Armed Forces have 434,000 active service members. Claudio Pramana/NurPhoto via Getty Images Active armed forces: 434,000Defense budget: $15 billion 12. Egypt The Egyptian Armed Forces have an estimated 479,000 reserve service members. KEROLOS SALAH/AFP via Getty Images Active armed forces: 439,000Defense budget: $2.3 billion 11. Vietnam The Vietnam People's Army has the world's largest number of reservists, with approximately 5 million. NHAC NGUYEN/AFP via Getty Images Active armed forces: 450,000Defense budget: $8.4 billion 10. South Korea The Republic of Korea Army has the second-largest reserve force, with approximately 3.1 million reservists. Chris Jung/NurPhoto via Getty Images Active armed forces: 450,000Defense budget: $43.8 billion 9. Ethiopia The Ethiopian National Defense Force has 503,000 active service members. AMANUEL SILESHI/AFP via Getty Images Active armed forces: 503,000Defense budget: $484 million 8. Iran The Islamic Republic of Iran Army has about 350,000 reserve service members. ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images Active armed forces: 610,000Defense budget: $6.1 billion 7. Pakistan Pakistan has about 291,000 gendarmerie and paramilitary members. Rizwan TABASSUM / AFP Active armed forces: 660,000Defense budget: $10 billion 6. Ukraine Ukraine's forces have swelled to battle the invasion Russia launched in 2022. Sean Gallup/Getty Images Active armed forces: 677,000Defense budget: $44.4 billion 5. Russia The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation have roughly 1.5 million reservists. NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/AFP via Getty Images Active armed forces: 1,264,000Defense budget: $161.2 billion 4. North Korea North Korea, a country of about 25 million, has an active force equivalent in size to the US, which is thirteen times more populous. Alain Nogues/Corbis via Getty Images Active armed forces: 1,280,000Defense budget: Not reported 3. United States The US has the world's largest defense budget at $921 billion in 2025. Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images Active armed forces: 1,340,000Defense budget: $921 billion 2. India India has a population of over 1.4 billion, more than four times that of the US. Vishal Bhatnagar/NurPhoto via Getty Images Active armed forces: 1,501,000Defense budget: $78.3 billion 1. China China is a communist state that has a population of 1.4 billion. VCG/VCG via Getty Images Active armed forces: 2,035,000Defense budget: $251.3 billion Read next Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know Business Insider tells the innovative stories you want to know Kristine Villarroel is a reporter on Business Insider's Editorial Partnerships team.Her reporting often turns data into accessible stories about how money, education, policy, and place shape Americans’ lives. She covers stories on college costs and degree outcomes, state-by-state comparisons, public officials’ salaries, the rising cost of living, travel, food, and real estate.She has previously worked writing about culture, entertainment, music, and tech. Her work has been featured on Teen Vogue and Wired. She graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in journalism. There, she worked as editor of The Independent Florida Alligator. Email Villarroel at kvillarroel@insider.com and follow her on X @ktnedelvalle North Korea Iran