Armed forces personnel percent in United Kingdom

United Kingdom: Armed forces personnel percent was 0.2272 in 2020. ▼ Falling

Latest (2020)
0.2272
Change on year
up 2.3%
World rank
115th
of 173 countries
All-time high
0.59
in 1985
All-time low
0.222
in 2019
Years of data
33
1985–2020

Armed forces personnel percent in United Kingdom, 1985–2020

00.20.40.61985200220201985: 0.591989: 0.5561990: 0.5371991: 0.5231992: 0.5081993: 0.4681994: 0.4431995: 0.4011996: 0.3791997: 0.3731998: 0.3721999: 0.3712000: 0.362001: 0.3572002: 0.3532003: 0.3552004: 0.3412005: 0.3582006: 0.2962007: 0.262008: 0.2582009: 0.2862010: 0.2762011: 0.2612012: 0.2642013: 0.2472014: 0.2382015: 0.2332016: 0.2282017: 0.2232018: 0.2222019: 0.2222020: 0.227

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for armed forces personnel percent in United Kingdom is 0.2272, measured in 2020.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 2.3% on the previous year and down 17.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, armed forces personnel percent in United Kingdom peaked at 0.59 in 1985 and was at its lowest, 0.222, in 2019.

That places United Kingdom 115th out of 173 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 33 years of available data.

Armed forces personnel percent in United Kingdom, year by year

Annual values for Armed forces personnel percent in United Kingdom, 1985 to 2020.
Year Value Change
1985 0.59 —
1989 0.5561 -5.7%
1990 0.5369 -3.5%
1991 0.523 -2.6%
1992 0.5076 -2.9%
1993 0.4684 -7.7%
1994 0.4431 -5.4%
1995 0.4007 -9.6%
1996 0.3791 -5.4%
1997 0.373 -1.6%
1998 0.3718 -0.3%
1999 0.3705 -0.4%
2000 0.3598 -2.9%
2001 0.3566 -0.9%
2002 0.3534 -0.9%
2003 0.3554 +0.6%
2004 0.3407 -4.1%
2005 0.3581 +5.1%
2006 0.2965 -17.2%
2007 0.26 -12.3%
2008 0.258 -0.8%
2009 0.2855 +10.7%
2010 0.2762 -3.3%
2011 0.2608 -5.6%
2012 0.2645 +1.4%
2013 0.2472 -6.5%
2014 0.2385 -3.5%
2015 0.233 -2.3%
2016 0.228 -2.1%
2017 0.223 -2.2%
2018 0.2224 -0.3%
2019 0.222 -0.2%
2020 0.2272 +2.3%

United Kingdom compared with similar countries

  • United Kingdom's 0.2272 is below the median for high income countries, which is 0.4613, 49% of the median. (57 countries reporting)
  • United Kingdom's 0.2272 is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.4623, 49% of the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 0.5731 0.5561 0.59 2
1990s 0.4374 0.3705 0.5369 10
2000s 0.3224 0.258 0.3598 10
2010s 0.2416 0.222 0.2762 10
2020s 0.2272 0.2272 0.2272 1

Countries ranked near United Kingdom

  1. 112 Switzerland 0.2315 compare
  2. 113 Argentina 0.2279 compare
  3. 114 Honduras 0.2273 compare
  4. 116 Germany 0.2188 compare
  5. 117 India 0.2187 compare
  6. 118 Jamaica 0.212 compare

See the full ranking of 173 places →

More reference data data for United Kingdom

All data for United Kingdom →

Frequently asked questions

What is armed forces personnel percent in United Kingdom?
Armed forces personnel percent in United Kingdom was 0.2272 in 2020, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest armed forces personnel percent recorded in United Kingdom?
The highest recorded value was 0.59 in 1985.
What is the lowest armed forces personnel percent recorded in United Kingdom?
The lowest recorded value was 0.222 in 2019.
How does United Kingdom rank for armed forces personnel percent?
United Kingdom ranks 115th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
Is armed forces personnel percent rising or falling in United Kingdom?
Over the last ten years it is down 17.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this United Kingdom data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Armed forces personnel percent. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Armed forces personnel percent in United Kingdom. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 14 November 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/armed-forces-personnel-percent/united-kingdom/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/armed-forces-personnel-percent/united-kingdom/">Armed forces personnel percent in United Kingdom</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Armed forces personnel percent
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
173 places, 5,352 data points, 1985–2020
Last refreshed