Armed forces personnel in Libya
Libya: Armed forces personnel was 0 in 2020. ▼ Falling
Armed forces personnel in Libya, 1985–2020
Source: The Military Balance - International Institute for Strategic Studies, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
The most recent figure for armed forces personnel in Libya is 0, measured in 2020. That is the lowest value across all 26 years on record.
Compared with earlier readings it is down 100.0% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel in Libya peaked at 86,000 in 1989 and was at its lowest, 0, in 2014.
Libya ranks 169th of 173 countries on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 26 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 79,500 | 73,000 | 86,000 | 2 |
| 1990s | 76,450 | 65,500 | 86,000 | 10 |
| 2000s | 76,200 | 76,000 | 76,500 | 10 |
| 2010s | 4,667 | 0 | 7,000 | 3 |
| 2020s | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Libya
- 169 Antigua and Barbuda 0 compare
- 169 Iceland 0 compare
- 169 Palestine 0 compare
- 169 Seychelles 0 compare
More reference data data for Libya
- Summer temperature anomalies 0.4458 °C (2026)
- Spring temperature anomalies -0.1917 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month 2.51 °C (2026)
- Universal right to vote 2 (2025)
- Chief executive of the government is elected 0 (2025)
- Democracy 0 (2025)
- Competitive elections 0 (2025)
- Elected parliament 0 (2025)
- Civil liberties rating 6 (2025)
- Universal right to vote in practice 0 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel in Libya?
- Armed forces personnel in Libya was 0 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 Libya?
- The highest recorded value was 86,000 in 1989.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel recorded in Libya?
- The lowest recorded value was 0 in 2014.
- How does Libya rank for armed forces personnel?
- Libya ranks 169th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel rising or falling in Libya?
- Over the last ten years it is down 100.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Libya 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.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
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.