Military personnel in Singapore

Singapore: Military personnel was 51,000 in 2022. ▲ Rising

Latest (2022)
51,000
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
61st
of 194 countries
All-time high
73,000
in 2005
All-time low
0
in 1965
Years of data
58
1965–2022

Military personnel in Singapore, 1965–2022

020.0k40.0k60.0k80.0k196519932022

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

Singapore recorded 51,000 for military personnel in 2022.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 30.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, military personnel in Singapore peaked at 73,000 in 2005 and was at its lowest, 0, in 1965.

Singapore ranks 61st of 194 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 58 years of available data.

Military personnel in Singapore, year by year

Annual values for Military personnel in Singapore, 1965 to 2022.
Year Value Change
1965 0 —
1966 0 —
1967 10,000 —
1968 11,000 +10.0%
1969 12,000 +9.1%
1970 14,000 +16.7%
1971 15,000 +7.1%
1972 20,000 +33.3%
1973 24,000 +20.0%
1974 24,000 +0.0%
1975 27,000 +12.5%
1976 35,000 +29.6%
1977 36,000 +2.9%
1978 64,000 +77.8%
1979 57,000 -10.9%
1980 50,000 -12.3%
1981 59,000 +18.0%
1982 60,000 +1.7%
1983 42,000 -30.0%
1984 56,000 +33.3%
1985 56,000 +0.0%
1986 56,000 +0.0%
1987 56,000 +0.0%
1988 56,000 +0.0%
1989 56,000 +0.0%
1990 56,000 +0.0%
1991 56,000 +0.0%
1992 56,000 +0.0%
1993 56,000 +0.0%
1994 56,000 +0.0%
1995 53,000 -5.4%
1996 53,000 +0.0%
1997 55,000 +3.8%
1998 60,000 +9.1%
1999 60,000 +0.0%
2000 60,000 +0.0%
2001 60,000 +0.0%
2002 60,000 +0.0%
2003 72,000 +20.0%
2004 72,000 +0.0%
2005 73,000 +1.4%
2006 73,000 +0.0%
2007 73,000 +0.0%
2008 73,000 +0.0%
2009 73,000 +0.0%
2010 73,000 +0.0%
2011 73,000 +0.0%
2012 73,000 +0.0%
2013 73,000 +0.0%
2014 73,000 +0.0%
2015 73,000 +0.0%
2016 73,000 +0.0%
2017 73,000 +0.0%
2018 73,000 +0.0%
2019 73,000 +0.0%
2020 51,000 -30.1%
2021 51,000 +0.0%
2022 51,000 +0.0%

Singapore compared with similar countries

  • Singapore's 51,000 is above the median for high income countries, which is 18,500, 2.8× the median. (64 countries reporting)
  • Singapore's 51,000 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 9,500, 5.4× the median. (30 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1960s 6,600 0 12,000 5
1970s 31,600 14,000 64,000 10
1980s 54,700 42,000 60,000 10
1990s 56,100 53,000 60,000 10
2000s 68,900 60,000 73,000 10
2010s 73,000 73,000 73,000 10
2020s 51,000 51,000 51,000 3

Countries ranked near Singapore

  1. 59 Dominican Republic 56,000 compare
  2. 60 South Sudan 53,000 compare
  3. 62 Cuba 49,000 compare
  4. 63 Belarus 48,000 compare
  5. 63 Uzbekistan 48,000 compare

See the full ranking of 194 places →

More reference data data for Singapore

All data for Singapore →

Frequently asked questions

What is military personnel in Singapore?
Military personnel in Singapore was 51,000 in 2022, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest military personnel recorded in Singapore?
The highest recorded value was 73,000 in 2005.
What is the lowest military personnel recorded in Singapore?
The lowest recorded value was 0 in 1965.
How does Singapore rank for military personnel?
Singapore ranks 61st out of 194 countries with data for 2022.
Is military personnel rising or falling in Singapore?
Over the last ten years it is down 30.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Singapore 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 Singapore. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 14 November 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/military-personnel/singapore/

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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