Military personnel in Nepal

Nepal: Military personnel was 97,000 in 2022. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2022)
97,000
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
48th
of 194 countries
All-time high
97,000
in 2017
All-time low
20,000
in 1924
Years of data
103
1920–2022

Military personnel in Nepal, 1920–2022

20.0k40.0k60.0k80.0k100.0k192019712022

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

The most recent figure for military personnel in Nepal is 97,000, measured in 2022. That is the highest value across all 103 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 1.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, military personnel in Nepal peaked at 97,000 in 2017 and was at its lowest, 20,000, in 1924.

Nepal ranks 48th of 194 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Military personnel in Nepal, year by year

Annual values for Military personnel in Nepal, 1920 to 2022.
Year Value Change
1920 30,000 —
1921 30,000 +0.0%
1922 30,000 +0.0%
1923 25,000 -16.7%
1924 20,000 -20.0%
1925 20,000 +0.0%
1926 20,000 +0.0%
1927 20,000 +0.0%
1928 20,000 +0.0%
1929 20,000 +0.0%
1930 20,000 +0.0%
1931 20,000 +0.0%
1932 20,000 +0.0%
1933 20,000 +0.0%
1934 20,000 +0.0%
1935 20,000 +0.0%
1936 20,000 +0.0%
1937 20,000 +0.0%
1938 20,000 +0.0%
1939 20,000 +0.0%
1940 20,000 +0.0%
1941 20,000 +0.0%
1942 20,000 +0.0%
1943 20,000 +0.0%
1944 20,000 +0.0%
1945 20,000 +0.0%
1946 20,000 +0.0%
1947 20,000 +0.0%
1948 20,000 +0.0%
1949 20,000 +0.0%
1950 20,000 +0.0%
1951 20,000 +0.0%
1952 20,000 +0.0%
1953 20,000 +0.0%
1954 20,000 +0.0%
1955 20,000 +0.0%
1956 20,000 +0.0%
1957 20,000 +0.0%
1958 20,000 +0.0%
1959 20,000 +0.0%
1960 20,000 +0.0%
1961 20,000 +0.0%
1962 20,000 +0.0%
1963 20,000 +0.0%
1964 20,000 +0.0%
1965 22,000 +10.0%
1966 22,000 +0.0%
1967 22,000 +0.0%
1968 22,000 +0.0%
1969 29,000 +31.8%
1970 29,000 +0.0%
1971 29,000 +0.0%
1972 32,000 +10.3%
1973 32,000 +0.0%
1974 32,000 +0.0%
1975 32,000 +0.0%
1976 32,000 +0.0%
1977 37,000 +15.6%
1978 32,000 -13.5%
1979 25,000 -21.9%
1980 21,000 -16.0%
1981 24,000 +14.3%
1982 24,000 +0.0%
1983 25,000 +4.2%
1984 25,000 +0.0%
1985 25,000 +0.0%
1986 25,000 +0.0%
1987 30,000 +20.0%
1988 35,000 +16.7%
1989 35,000 +0.0%
1990 35,000 +0.0%
1991 35,000 +0.0%
1992 35,000 +0.0%
1993 35,000 +0.0%
1994 35,000 +0.0%
1995 40,000 +14.3%
1996 35,000 -12.5%
1997 35,000 +0.0%
1998 35,000 +0.0%
1999 35,000 +0.0%
2000 50,000 +42.9%
2001 46,000 -8.0%
2002 51,000 +10.9%
2003 63,000 +23.5%
2004 66,000 +4.8%
2005 69,000 +4.5%
2006 69,000 +0.0%
2007 69,000 +0.0%
2008 69,000 +0.0%
2009 69,000 +0.0%
2010 96,000 +39.1%
2011 96,000 +0.0%
2012 96,000 +0.0%
2013 96,000 +0.0%
2014 96,000 +0.0%
2015 96,000 +0.0%
2016 96,000 +0.0%
2017 97,000 +1.0%
2018 97,000 +0.0%
2019 97,000 +0.0%
2020 97,000 +0.0%
2021 97,000 +0.0%
2022 97,000 +0.0%

Nepal compared with similar countries

  • Nepal's 97,000 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 15,500, 6.3× the median. (46 countries reporting)
  • Nepal's 97,000 is below the median for South Asia, which is 130,000, 75% of the median. (6 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1920s 23,500 20,000 30,000 10
1930s 20,000 20,000 20,000 10
1940s 20,000 20,000 20,000 10
1950s 20,000 20,000 20,000 10
1960s 21,700 20,000 29,000 10
1970s 31,200 25,000 37,000 10
1980s 26,900 21,000 35,000 10
1990s 35,500 35,000 40,000 10
2000s 62,100 46,000 69,000 10
2010s 96,300 96,000 97,000 10
2020s 97,000 97,000 97,000 3

Countries ranked near Nepal

  1. 45 Sudan 104,000 compare
  2. 46 Jordan 101,000 compare
  3. 47 Afghanistan 100,000 compare
  4. 49 United Arab Emirates 83,000 compare
  5. 50 Peru 81,000 compare
  6. 51 South Africa 74,000 compare

See the full ranking of 194 places →

More reference data data for Nepal

All data for Nepal →

Frequently asked questions

What is military personnel in Nepal?
Military personnel in Nepal was 97,000 in 2022, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest military personnel recorded in Nepal?
The highest recorded value was 97,000 in 2017.
What is the lowest military personnel recorded in Nepal?
The lowest recorded value was 20,000 in 1924.
How does Nepal rank for military personnel?
Nepal ranks 48th out of 194 countries with data for 2022.
Is military personnel rising or falling in Nepal?
Over the last ten years it is up 1.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Nepal data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Military personnel. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Military personnel in Nepal. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 13 November 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/military-personnel/nepal/

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About this data

Indicator
Military personnel
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
194 places, 15,765 data points, 1816–2022
Last refreshed