North Korea vs Russia: Military personnel, gaps filled

North Korea
1.28 million people
in 2022
Russia
1.19 million people
in 2022
North Korea rank
4th
Russia rank
5th

Military personnel, gaps filled over time

  • North Korea
  • Russia
02.5M5.0M7.5M10.0M12.5M181619192022

How they compare

North Korea currently reports 1.28 million people against 1.19 million people in Russia, a difference of 90,000 people.

That makes North Korea's figure about 1.1 times Russia's.

The two have swapped places 1 time across 75 shared years of data; in 1948 it was Russia ahead.

North Korea ranks 4th and Russia ranks 5th of 194 countries.

Across the 9 decades both report, North Korea averaged higher in 3 and Russia in 6.

Head to head by decade

Decade North Korea Russia Difference Ahead
1940s 130,000 people 3.25 million people 3.12 million people Russia
1950s 267,100 people 4.96 million people 4.69 million people Russia
1960s 384,800 people 3.46 million people 3.08 million people Russia
1970s 510,200 people 4.03 million people 3.52 million people Russia
1980s 816,000 people 3.88 million people 3.06 million people Russia
1990s 1.11 million people 1.71 million people 600,000 people Russia
2000s 1.09 million people 1.01 million people 85,100 people North Korea
2010s 1.20 million people 891,900 people 307,700 people North Korea
2020s 1.28 million people 996,667 people 283,333 people North Korea

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher military personnel, gaps filled, North Korea or Russia?
North Korea, at 1.28 million people against 1.19 million people in Russia as of 2022.
What is the difference in military personnel, gaps filled between North Korea and Russia?
90,000 people, with North Korea ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for North Korea and Russia?
75 years are reported by both, from 1948 to 2022.
How do North Korea and Russia rank globally for military personnel, gaps filled?
North Korea ranks 4th and Russia ranks 5th of 194 countries.
Where does this data come from?
Statizoid (derived), published as Military personnel, gaps filled. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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North Korea vs Russia: Military personnel, gaps filled. Statizoid, drawing on Statizoid (derived). Retrieved 22 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/compare/military-personnel-gaps-filled/korea-dem-people-s-rep/russian-federation/

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About this data

Indicator
Military personnel, gaps filled
Unit
people
Source
Statizoid (derived)
Licence
Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page
Coverage
194 places, 15,868 data points, 1816–2022
Last refreshed

Military personnel with 103 missing years estimated by linear interpolation between the nearest real observations. Only gaps of 4 years or fewer are filled, and never beyond the first or last actual measurement — these are filled holes, not forecasts.