Armed forces personnel in Portugal
Portugal: Armed forces personnel was 52,000 in 2020. ▼ Falling
Armed forces personnel in Portugal, 1985–2020
Source: The Military Balance - International Institute for Strategic Studies, via World Bank (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2020, armed forces personnel in Portugal stood at 52,000. That is the lowest value across all 33 years on record.
That represents a change of down 42.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel in Portugal peaked at 122,000 in 1994 and was at its lowest, 52,000, in 2017.
That places Portugal 68th 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.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 88,500 | 73,000 | 104,000 | 2 |
| 1990s | 93,630 | 68,000 | 122,000 | 10 |
| 2000s | 91,114 | 90,000 | 93,000 | 10 |
| 2010s | 73,323 | 52,000 | 90,334 | 10 |
| 2020s | 52,000 | 52,000 | 52,000 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Portugal
More reference data data for Portugal
- Spring temperature anomalies 0.5537 °C (2026)
- Summer temperature anomalies 2.05 °C (2026)
- Temperature anomalies by month 0.3824 °C (2026)
- Universal right to vote in practice 2 (2025)
- Autumn temperature anomalies -0.3904 °C (2025)
- Winter temperature anomalies 0.0004 °C (2025)
- Consumer price index 132.05 2010 = 100 (2025)
- Universal right to vote 2 (2025)
- Competitive elections 1 (2025)
- Men's universal right to vote 1 (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel in Portugal?
- Armed forces personnel in Portugal was 52,000 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 Portugal?
- The highest recorded value was 122,000 in 1994.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel recorded in Portugal?
- The lowest recorded value was 52,000 in 2017.
- How does Portugal rank for armed forces personnel?
- Portugal ranks 68th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel rising or falling in Portugal?
- Over the last ten years it is down 42.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Portugal 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.