Armed forces personnel in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka: Armed forces personnel was 317,000 in 2020. ▲ Rising
Armed forces personnel in Sri Lanka, 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 Sri Lanka stood at 317,000. That is the highest value across all 33 years on record.
The figure is up 42.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, armed forces personnel in Sri Lanka peaked at 317,000 in 2017 and was at its lowest, 21,600, in 1985.
Sri Lanka ranks 22nd 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 Sri Lanka, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | 21,600 | — |
| 1989 | 22,000 | +1.9% |
| 1990 | 22,000 | +0.0% |
| 1991 | 110,000 | +400.0% |
| 1992 | 110,000 | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 110,000 | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 110,000 | +0.0% |
| 1995 | 235,500 | +114.1% |
| 1996 | 225,200 | -4.4% |
| 1997 | 227,200 | +0.9% |
| 1998 | 225,200 | -0.9% |
| 1999 | 218,300 | -3.1% |
| 2000 | 203,600 | -6.7% |
| 2001 | 209,600 | +2.9% |
| 2002 | 246,500 | +17.6% |
| 2003 | 240,900 | -2.3% |
| 2004 | 239,000 | -0.8% |
| 2005 | 200,000 | -16.3% |
| 2006 | 213,000 | +6.5% |
| 2007 | 213,000 | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 213,000 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 223,100 | +4.7% |
| 2010 | 223,100 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 223,100 | +0.0% |
| 2012 | 223,100 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 223,100 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 223,100 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 265,200 | +18.9% |
| 2016 | 305,200 | +15.1% |
| 2017 | 317,000 | +3.9% |
| 2018 | 317,000 | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 317,000 | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 317,000 | +0.0% |
Sri Lanka compared with similar countries
- Sri Lanka's 317,000 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 64,000, 5.0× the median. (48 countries reporting)
- Sri Lanka's 317,000 is above the median for South Asia, which is 227,000, 1.4× the median. (5 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Armed forces personnel in Sri Lanka 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | +400.0% | 22,000 | 110,000 |
| 1995 | +114.1% | 110,000 | 235,500 |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 21,800 | 21,600 | 22,000 | 2 |
| 1990s | 159,340 | 22,000 | 235,500 | 10 |
| 2000s | 220,170 | 200,000 | 246,500 | 10 |
| 2010s | 263,690 | 223,100 | 317,000 | 10 |
| 2020s | 317,000 | 317,000 | 317,000 | 1 |
Countries ranked near Sri Lanka
More reference data data for Sri Lanka
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.1608 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 0.316 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 2.33 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.1784 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 2.33 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.539 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 0.1604 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 1.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 10.15 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.9713 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is armed forces personnel in Sri Lanka?
- Armed forces personnel in Sri Lanka was 317,000 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 Sri Lanka?
- The highest recorded value was 317,000 in 2017.
- What is the lowest armed forces personnel recorded in Sri Lanka?
- The lowest recorded value was 21,600 in 1985.
- How does Sri Lanka rank for armed forces personnel?
- Sri Lanka ranks 22nd out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
- Is armed forces personnel rising or falling in Sri Lanka?
- Over the last ten years it is up 42.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Sri Lanka 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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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.