Russia vs United Kingdom: Military spending
Russia
120.26 billion constant 2022 US$
in 2023
United Kingdom
84.21 billion constant 2022 US$
in 2023
Russia rank
3rd
United Kingdom rank
6th
Military spending over time
- Russia
- United Kingdom
How they compare
Russia currently reports 120.26 billion constant 2022 US$ against 84.21 billion constant 2022 US$ in United Kingdom, a difference of 36.05 billion constant 2022 US$.
That makes Russia's figure about 1.4 times United Kingdom's.
The two have swapped places 27 times across 208 shared years of data; in 1816 it was United Kingdom ahead.
Russia ranks 3rd and United Kingdom ranks 6th of 172 countries.
Across the 22 decades both report, Russia averaged higher in 11 and United Kingdom in 11.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Russia | United Kingdom | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1810s | 698.98 million constant 2022 US$ | 1.13 billion constant 2022 US$ | 433.96 million constant 2022 US$ | United Kingdom |
| 1820s | 841.24 million constant 2022 US$ | 1.09 billion constant 2022 US$ | 247.48 million constant 2022 US$ | United Kingdom |
| 1830s | 1.10 billion constant 2022 US$ | 1.06 billion constant 2022 US$ | 35.32 million constant 2022 US$ | Russia |
| 1840s | 1.96 billion constant 2022 US$ | 1.63 billion constant 2022 US$ | 322.03 million constant 2022 US$ | Russia |
| 1850s | 3.02 billion constant 2022 US$ | 3.38 billion constant 2022 US$ | 362.78 million constant 2022 US$ | United Kingdom |
| 1860s | 2.54 billion constant 2022 US$ | 2.82 billion constant 2022 US$ | 281.77 million constant 2022 US$ | United Kingdom |
| 1870s | 3.67 billion constant 2022 US$ | 2.39 billion constant 2022 US$ | 1.28 billion constant 2022 US$ | Russia |
| 1880s | 2.98 billion constant 2022 US$ | 3.09 billion constant 2022 US$ | 116.79 million constant 2022 US$ | United Kingdom |
| 1890s | 4.58 billion constant 2022 US$ | 4.67 billion constant 2022 US$ | 85.62 million constant 2022 US$ | United Kingdom |
| 1900s | 8.44 billion constant 2022 US$ | 9.20 billion constant 2022 US$ | 758.85 million constant 2022 US$ | United Kingdom |
| 1910s | 34.65 billion constant 2022 US$ | 55.65 billion constant 2022 US$ | 21.00 billion constant 2022 US$ | United Kingdom |
| 1920s | 21.65 billion constant 2022 US$ | 8.65 billion constant 2022 US$ | 13.00 billion constant 2022 US$ | Russia |
| 1930s | 60.73 billion constant 2022 US$ | 23.95 billion constant 2022 US$ | 36.78 billion constant 2022 US$ | Russia |
| 1940s | 114.32 billion constant 2022 US$ | 148.55 billion constant 2022 US$ | 34.23 billion constant 2022 US$ | United Kingdom |
| 1950s | 202.38 billion constant 2022 US$ | 38.49 billion constant 2022 US$ | 163.89 billion constant 2022 US$ | Russia |
| 1960s | 300.59 billion constant 2022 US$ | 40.25 billion constant 2022 US$ | 260.34 billion constant 2022 US$ | Russia |
| 1970s | 430.34 billion constant 2022 US$ | 44.38 billion constant 2022 US$ | 385.97 billion constant 2022 US$ | Russia |
| 1980s | 444.40 billion constant 2022 US$ | 64.47 billion constant 2022 US$ | 379.92 billion constant 2022 US$ | Russia |
| 1990s | 115.79 billion constant 2022 US$ | 62.86 billion constant 2022 US$ | 52.93 billion constant 2022 US$ | Russia |
| 2000s | 52.70 billion constant 2022 US$ | 71.04 billion constant 2022 US$ | 18.34 billion constant 2022 US$ | United Kingdom |
| 2010s | 67.36 billion constant 2022 US$ | 69.23 billion constant 2022 US$ | 1.87 billion constant 2022 US$ | United Kingdom |
| 2020s | 98.21 billion constant 2022 US$ | 79.71 billion constant 2022 US$ | 18.50 billion constant 2022 US$ | Russia |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher military spending, Russia or United Kingdom?
- Russia, at 120.26 billion constant 2022 US$ against 84.21 billion constant 2022 US$ in United Kingdom as of 2023.
- What is the difference in military spending between Russia and United Kingdom?
- 36.05 billion constant 2022 US$, with Russia ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Russia and United Kingdom?
- 208 years are reported by both, from 1816 to 2023.
- How do Russia and United Kingdom rank globally for military spending?
- Russia ranks 3rd and United Kingdom ranks 6th of 172 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Military spending. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
This data is expressed in US dollars. It is adjusted for inflation but does not account for differences in the cost of living between countries.