Armed forces personnel in Egypt
Egypt: Armed forces personnel was 836,000 in 2020. ▲ Rising
Armed forces personnel in Egypt, 1985–2020
Source: The Military Balance - International Institute for Strategic Studies, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Egypt recorded 836,000 for armed forces personnel in 2020.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel in Egypt peaked at 866,000 in 2006 and was at its lowest, 424,000, in 1992.
That places Egypt 7th out of 173 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Armed forces personnel in Egypt, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 445,000 | — |
| 1989 | 450,000 | +1.1% |
| 1990 | 434,000 | -3.6% |
| 1991 | 434,000 | +0.0% |
| 1992 | 424,000 | -2.3% |
| 1993 | 424,000 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 430,000 | +1.4% |
| 1995 | 610,000 | +41.9% |
| 1996 | 672,000 | +10.2% |
| 1997 | 680,000 | +1.2% |
| 1998 | 680,000 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 680,000 | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 678,500 | -0.2% |
| 2001 | 768,000 | +13.2% |
| 2002 | 773,000 | +0.7% |
| 2003 | 780,000 | +0.9% |
| 2004 | 798,000 | +2.3% |
| 2005 | 799,000 | +0.1% |
| 2006 | 866,000 | +8.4% |
| 2007 | 866,000 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 866,000 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 865,500 | -0.1% |
| 2010 | 835,500 | -3.5% |
| 2011 | 835,500 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 835,500 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 835,500 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 835,500 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 835,500 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 835,500 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 836,000 | +0.1% |
| 2018 | 835,500 | -0.1% |
| 2019 | 836,000 | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 836,000 | +0.0% |
Egypt compared with similar countries
- Egypt's 836,000 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 23,000, 36.3× the median. (43 countries reporting)
- Egypt's 836,000 is above the median for Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan, which is 80,000, 10.4× the median. (23 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Armed forces personnel in Egypt 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 | +41.9% | 430,000 | 610,000 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 447,500 | 445,000 | 450,000 | 2 |
| 1990s | 546,800 | 424,000 | 680,000 | 10 |
| 2000s | 806,000 | 678,500 | 866,000 | 10 |
| 2010s | 835,600 | 835,500 | 836,000 | 10 |
| 2020s | 836,000 | 836,000 | 836,000 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Egypt
More reference data data for Egypt
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.2851 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 5.23 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 16.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 1.2 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 16.05 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.956 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.4622 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 25.55 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 71.76 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 6.55 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel in Egypt?
- Armed forces personnel in Egypt was 836,000 in 2020, according to The Military Balance - International Institute for Strategic Studies, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest armed forces personnel recorded in Egypt?
- The highest recorded value was 866,000 in 2006.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel recorded in Egypt?
- The lowest recorded value was 424,000 in 1992.
- How does Egypt rank for armed forces personnel?
- Egypt ranks 7th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel rising or falling in Egypt?
- Over the last ten years it is up 0.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Egypt data come from?
- The figures come from The Military Balance - International Institute for Strategic Studies, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Armed forces personnel. 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.