Armed forces personnel in Peru
Peru: Armed forces personnel was 158,000 in 2020. ▲ Rising
Armed forces personnel in Peru, 1985–2020
Source: The Military Balance - International Institute for Strategic Studies, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
Peru recorded 158,000 for armed forces personnel in 2020.
The figure is down 17.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel in Peru peaked at 203,000 in 1997 and was at its lowest, 110,000, in 1989.
Peru ranks 38th of 173 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.
Armed forces personnel in Peru, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 128,000 | — |
| 1989 | 110,000 | -14.1% |
| 1990 | 125,000 | +13.6% |
| 1991 | 123,000 | -1.6% |
| 1992 | 112,000 | -8.9% |
| 1993 | 112,000 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 112,000 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 177,600 | +58.6% |
| 1996 | 193,600 | +9.0% |
| 1997 | 203,000 | +4.9% |
| 1998 | 203,000 | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 193,000 | -4.9% |
| 2000 | 193,000 | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 177,000 | -8.3% |
| 2002 | 187,000 | +5.6% |
| 2003 | 177,000 | -5.3% |
| 2004 | 157,000 | -11.3% |
| 2005 | 157,000 | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 198,000 | +26.1% |
| 2007 | 198,000 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 191,000 | -3.5% |
| 2009 | 192,000 | +0.5% |
| 2010 | 192,000 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 192,000 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 192,000 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 192,000 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 158,000 | -17.7% |
| 2015 | 158,000 | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 158,000 | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 158,000 | +0.0% |
| 2018 | 158,000 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 158,000 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 158,000 | +0.0% |
Peru compared with similar countries
- Peru's 158,000 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 64,000, 2.5× the median. (48 countries reporting)
- Peru's 158,000 is above the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 28,500, 5.5× the median. (28 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Armed forces personnel in Peru 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 | +58.6% | 112,000 | 177,600 |
| 2006 | +26.1% | 157,000 | 198,000 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 119,000 | 110,000 | 128,000 | 2 |
| 1990s | 155,420 | 112,000 | 203,000 | 10 |
| 2000s | 182,700 | 157,000 | 198,000 | 10 |
| 2010s | 171,600 | 158,000 | 192,000 | 10 |
| 2020s | 158,000 | 158,000 | 158,000 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Peru
- 35 Germany 183,000 compare
- 36 Israel 178,000 compare
- 37 Afghanistan 165,000 compare
- 38 Belarus 158,000 compare
- 40 Philippines 157,000 compare
- 41 United Kingdom 153,000 compare
More reference data data for Peru
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.15 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 4.39 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 7.94 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.3808 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 7.94 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 3.84 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.94 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 18.98 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 35.25 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.07 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel in Peru?
- Armed forces personnel in Peru was 158,000 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 Peru?
- The highest recorded value was 203,000 in 1997.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel recorded in Peru?
- The lowest recorded value was 110,000 in 1989.
- How does Peru rank for armed forces personnel?
- Peru ranks 38th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel rising or falling in Peru?
- Over the last ten years it is down 17.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Peru 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 — 33 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.