Afghanistan vs Spain: Armed forces personnel as a share of total population
Afghanistan
0.4%
in 2020
Spain
0.4%
in 2020
Afghanistan rank
73rd
Spain rank
74th
Armed forces personnel as a share of total population over time
- Afghanistan
- Spain
How they compare
Afghanistan currently reports 0.4% against 0.4% in Spain, a difference of 0.0%.
The two have swapped places 5 times across 32 shared years of data; in 1985 it was Spain ahead.
Afghanistan ranks 73rd and Spain ranks 74th of 173 countries.
Across the 5 decades both report, Afghanistan averaged higher in 4 and Spain in 1.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Afghanistan | Spain | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0.4% | 0.8% | 0.3% | Spain |
| 1990s | 1.3% | 0.6% | 0.7% | Afghanistan |
| 2000s | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.0% | Afghanistan |
| 2010s | 1.0% | 0.4% | 0.5% | Afghanistan |
| 2020s | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.0% | Afghanistan |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher armed forces personnel as a share of total population, Afghanistan or Spain?
- Afghanistan, at 0.4% against 0.4% in Spain as of 2020.
- What is the difference in armed forces personnel as a share of total population between Afghanistan and Spain?
- 0.0%, with Afghanistan ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Afghanistan and Spain?
- 32 years are reported by both, from 1985 to 2020.
- How do Afghanistan and Spain rank globally for armed forces personnel as a share of total population?
- Afghanistan ranks 73rd and Spain ranks 74th of 173 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- The Military Balance - International Institute for Strategic Studies, via World Bank (2026); Population based on various sources (2024) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Armed forces personnel as a share of total population. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Armed forces personnel are active duty military personnel, including paramilitary forces if their training, organization, equipment, and control suggest they may be used to support or replace regular military forces.