Military personnel in Thailand

Thailand: Military personnel was 361,000 in 2022. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2022)
361,000
Change on year
unchanged
World rank
15th
of 194 countries
All-time high
361,000
in 2013
All-time low
4,000
in 1901
Years of data
130
1887–2022

Military personnel in Thailand, 1887–2022

0100.0k200.0k300.0k400.0k188719542022

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

Thailand recorded 361,000 for military personnel in 2022. That is the highest value across all 130 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 18.0% over ten years.

Over the whole period, military personnel in Thailand peaked at 361,000 in 2013 and was at its lowest, 4,000, in 1901.

That places Thailand 15th out of 194 countries with data for 2022, putting it in the top 10%.

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

Military personnel in Thailand, year by year

Annual values for Military personnel in Thailand, 1887 to 2022.
Year Value Change
1887 15,000 —
1888 15,000 +0.0%
1889 15,000 +0.0%
1890 15,000 +0.0%
1891 15,000 +0.0%
1892 15,000 +0.0%
1893 5,000 -66.7%
1894 6,000 +20.0%
1895 6,000 +0.0%
1896 6,000 +0.0%
1897 6,000 +0.0%
1898 6,000 +0.0%
1899 6,000 +0.0%
1900 10,000 +66.7%
1901 4,000 -60.0%
1902 10,000 +150.0%
1903 18,000 +80.0%
1904 18,000 +0.0%
1905 18,000 +0.0%
1906 16,000 -11.1%
1907 26,000 +62.5%
1908 31,000 +19.2%
1909 31,000 +0.0%
1910 31,000 +0.0%
1911 31,000 +0.0%
1912 31,000 +0.0%
1913 31,000 +0.0%
1914 32,000 +3.2%
1915 32,000 +0.0%
1916 32,000 +0.0%
1917 32,000 +0.0%
1918 32,000 +0.0%
1919 25,000 -21.9%
1920 25,000 +0.0%
1921 25,000 +0.0%
1922 24,000 -4.0%
1923 26,000 +8.3%
1924 26,000 +0.0%
1925 25,000 -3.8%
1926 26,000 +4.0%
1927 27,000 +3.8%
1928 27,000 +0.0%
1929 28,000 +3.7%
1930 28,000 +0.0%
1931 30,000 +7.1%
1932 30,000 +0.0%
1933 27,000 -10.0%
1934 27,000 +0.0%
1935 27,000 +0.0%
1936 32,000 +18.5%
1937 35,000 +9.4%
1938 38,000 +8.6%
1939 31,000 -18.4%
1946 44,000 +41.9%
1947 44,000 +0.0%
1948 44,000 +0.0%
1949 44,000 +0.0%
1950 44,000 +0.0%
1951 44,000 +0.0%
1952 44,000 +0.0%
1953 45,000 +2.3%
1954 45,000 +0.0%
1955 45,000 +0.0%
1956 50,000 +11.1%
1957 100,000 +100.0%
1958 100,000 +0.0%
1959 99,000 -1.0%
1960 97,000 -2.0%
1961 80,000 -17.5%
1962 83,000 +3.8%
1963 85,000 +2.4%
1964 85,000 +0.0%
1965 132,000 +55.3%
1966 151,000 +14.4%
1967 151,000 +0.0%
1968 167,000 +10.6%
1969 175,000 +4.8%
1970 175,000 +0.0%
1971 195,000 +11.4%
1972 205,000 +5.1%
1973 233,000 +13.7%
1974 221,000 -5.2%
1975 227,000 +2.7%
1976 228,000 +0.4%
1977 230,000 +0.9%
1978 250,000 +8.7%
1979 250,000 +0.0%
1980 234,000 -6.4%
1981 250,000 +6.8%
1982 250,000 +0.0%
1983 233,000 -6.8%
1984 235,000 +0.9%
1985 235,000 +0.0%
1986 256,000 +8.9%
1987 256,000 +0.0%
1988 256,000 +0.0%
1989 283,000 +10.5%
1990 283,000 +0.0%
1991 283,000 +0.0%
1992 283,000 +0.0%
1993 295,000 +4.2%
1994 290,000 -1.7%
1995 288,000 -0.7%
1996 288,000 +0.0%
1997 288,000 +0.0%
1998 280,000 -2.8%
1999 300,000 +7.1%
2000 301,000 +0.3%
2001 306,000 +1.7%
2002 306,000 +0.0%
2003 314,000 +2.6%
2004 310,000 -1.3%
2005 307,000 -1.0%
2006 307,000 +0.0%
2007 307,000 +0.0%
2008 306,000 -0.3%
2009 307,000 +0.3%
2010 306,000 -0.3%
2011 306,000 +0.0%
2012 306,000 +0.0%
2013 361,000 +18.0%
2014 361,000 +0.0%
2015 361,000 +0.0%
2016 361,000 +0.0%
2017 361,000 +0.0%
2018 361,000 +0.0%
2019 361,000 +0.0%
2020 361,000 +0.0%
2021 361,000 +0.0%
2022 361,000 +0.0%

Thailand compared with similar countries

  • Thailand's 361,000 is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 23,000, 15.7× the median. (58 countries reporting)
  • Thailand's 361,000 is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 9,500, 38.0× the median. (30 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1880s 15,000 15,000 15,000 3
1890s 8,600 5,000 15,000 10
1900s 18,200 4,000 31,000 10
1910s 30,900 25,000 32,000 10
1920s 25,900 24,000 28,000 10
1930s 30,500 27,000 38,000 10
1940s 44,000 44,000 44,000 4
1950s 61,600 44,000 100,000 10
1960s 120,600 80,000 175,000 10
1970s 221,400 175,000 250,000 10
1980s 248,800 233,000 283,000 10
1990s 287,800 280,000 300,000 10
2000s 307,100 301,000 314,000 10
2010s 344,500 306,000 361,000 10
2020s 361,000 361,000 361,000 3

Countries ranked near Thailand

  1. 12 Egypt 439,000 compare
  2. 13 Indonesia 396,000 compare
  3. 14 Brazil 367,000 compare
  4. 16 Myanmar 356,000 compare
  5. 17 Turkey 355,000 compare
  6. 18 Eritrea 302,000 compare

See the full ranking of 194 places →

More reference data data for Thailand

All data for Thailand →

Frequently asked questions

What is military personnel in Thailand?
Military personnel in Thailand was 361,000 in 2022, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest military personnel recorded in Thailand?
The highest recorded value was 361,000 in 2013.
What is the lowest military personnel recorded in Thailand?
The lowest recorded value was 4,000 in 1901.
How does Thailand rank for military personnel?
Thailand ranks 15th out of 194 countries with data for 2022.
Is military personnel rising or falling in Thailand?
Over the last ten years it is up 18.0%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Thailand 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 Thailand. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 13 November 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/military-personnel/thailand/

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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