Cuba vs El Salvador: Armed forces personnel as a share of total population

Cuba
0.7%
in 2020
El Salvador
0.7%
in 2020
Cuba rank
38th
El Salvador rank
39th

Armed forces personnel as a share of total population over time

  • Cuba
  • El Salvador
0123198520022020

How they compare

Cuba currently reports 0.7% against 0.7% in El Salvador, a difference of 0.0%.

The two have swapped places 4 times across 33 shared years of data; in 1985 it was Cuba ahead.

Cuba ranks 38th and El Salvador ranks 39th of 173 countries.

Cuba has averaged higher in every one of the 5 decades both report.

Head to head by decade

Decade Cuba El Salvador Difference Ahead
1980s 2.2% 0.9% 1.4% Cuba
1990s 1.5% 0.8% 0.7% Cuba
2000s 0.7% 0.5% 0.2% Cuba
2010s 0.7% 0.6% 0.1% Cuba
2020s 0.7% 0.7% 0.0% Cuba

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher armed forces personnel as a share of total population, Cuba or El Salvador?
Cuba, at 0.7% against 0.7% in El Salvador as of 2020.
What is the difference in armed forces personnel as a share of total population between Cuba and El Salvador?
0.0%, with Cuba ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Cuba and El Salvador?
33 years are reported by both, from 1985 to 2020.
How do Cuba and El Salvador rank globally for armed forces personnel as a share of total population?
Cuba ranks 38th and El Salvador ranks 39th 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

Indicator
Armed forces personnel as a share of total population
Unit
%
Source
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
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
173 places, 5,352 data points, 1985–2020
Last refreshed

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.