Armed forces personnel as a share of total population in Thailand
Thailand: Armed forces personnel as a share of total population was 0.6% in 2020. ▲ Rising
Armed forces personnel as a share of total population in Thailand, 1985–2020
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. Measured in %.
Analysis
Thailand recorded 0.6% for armed forces personnel as a share of total population in 2020.
That represents a change of down 0.2% on the previous year and up 3.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel as a share of total population in Thailand peaked at 0.7% in 1995 and was at its lowest, 0.5%, in 1985.
That places Thailand 47th out of 173 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Armed forces personnel as a share of total population in Thailand, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 0.5% | — |
| 1989 | 0.5% | +12.3% |
| 1990 | 0.5% | -1.6% |
| 1991 | 0.5% | -1.6% |
| 1992 | 0.5% | -1.6% |
| 1993 | 0.5% | +2.6% |
| 1994 | 0.5% | -3.1% |
| 1995 | 0.7% | +42.9% |
| 1996 | 0.7% | -7.7% |
| 1997 | 0.6% | -15.5% |
| 1998 | 0.6% | +10.4% |
| 1999 | 0.6% | -1.2% |
| 2000 | 0.7% | +9.3% |
| 2001 | 0.6% | -2.6% |
| 2002 | 0.7% | +1.2% |
| 2003 | 0.7% | +1.0% |
| 2004 | 0.6% | -2.8% |
| 2005 | 0.6% | -0.4% |
| 2006 | 0.6% | -1.1% |
| 2007 | 0.6% | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 0.6% | -0.5% |
| 2009 | 0.6% | -1.1% |
| 2010 | 0.6% | -0.7% |
| 2011 | 0.7% | +12.4% |
| 2012 | 0.7% | -5.0% |
| 2013 | 0.6% | -0.6% |
| 2014 | 0.6% | -0.5% |
| 2015 | 0.6% | -0.2% |
| 2016 | 0.6% | -0.5% |
| 2017 | 0.6% | -0.3% |
| 2018 | 0.6% | -0.3% |
| 2019 | 0.6% | -0.2% |
| 2020 | 0.6% | -0.2% |
Thailand compared with similar countries
- Thailand's 0.6% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.5%, 1.4× the median. (48 countries reporting)
- Thailand's 0.6% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.5%, 1.3× the median. (20 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Armed forces personnel as a share of total population in Thailand changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | +42.9% | 0.5% | 0.7% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 2 |
| 1990s | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.7% | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.7% | 10 |
| 2020s | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 1 |
Countries ranked near Thailand
More reference data data for Thailand
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.67 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.89 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 13.08 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.45 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 13.08 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 5.58 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 7.72 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 10.67 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 65.23 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 7.92 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel as a share of total population in Thailand?
- Armed forces personnel as a share of total population in Thailand was 0.6% in 2020, according to 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.
- What is the highest armed forces personnel as a share of total population recorded in Thailand?
- The highest recorded value was 0.7% in 1995.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel as a share of total population recorded in Thailand?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5% in 1985.
- How does Thailand rank for armed forces personnel as a share of total population?
- Thailand ranks 47th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel as a share of total population rising or falling in Thailand?
- Over the last ten years it is up 3.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Thailand data come from?
- The figures 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 part of Armed forces personnel as a share of total population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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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.