What is military spending, per unit of gdp in China?

Military spending, per unit of gdp in China was 0.0191 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP in 2023, according to Statizoid (derived).

What is the highest military spending, per unit of gdp recorded in China?

The highest recorded value was 1.18 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP in 1968.

What is the lowest military spending, per unit of gdp recorded in China?

The lowest recorded value was 0.0147 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP in 2012.

How does China rank for military spending, per unit of gdp?

China ranks 70th out of 170 countries with data for 2023.

Is military spending, per unit of gdp rising or falling in China?

Over the last ten years it is up 27.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.

Where does this China data come from?

The figures come from Statizoid (derived), published as part of Military spending, per unit of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Military spending, per unit of GDP in China

Name: Military spending, per unit of GDP in China
Creator: Statizoid (derived)
License: Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page

China: Military spending, per unit of GDP was 0.0191 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP in 2023. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2023)

0.0191 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP

Change on year

up 3.7%

World rank

70th

of 170 countries

All-time high

1.18 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP

in 1968

All-time low

0.0147 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP

in 2012

Years of data

1960–2023

Military spending, per unit of GDP in China, 1960–2023

Source: Statizoid (derived). Measured in constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP.

Analysis

China recorded 0.0191 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP for military spending, per unit of gdp in 2023.

The figure is up 3.7% on the previous year and up 27.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, military spending, per unit of gdp in China peaked at 1.18 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP in 1968 and was at its lowest, 0.0147 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP, in 2012.

China ranks 70th of 170 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

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

Military spending, per unit of GDP in China, year by year

Annual values for Military spending, per unit of GDP in China, 1960 to 2023.
Year	constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	Change
1960	0.7572 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	—
1961	0.9378 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+23.9%
1962	1.14 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+21.7%
1963	1.11 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-3.1%
1964	1.06 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-4.3%
1965	1.01 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-4.1%
1966	0.999 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-1.4%
1967	1.09 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+9.1%
1968	1.18 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+8.0%
1969	1.17 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-0.9%
1970	1.11 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-4.9%
1971	1.18 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+6.1%
1972	0.9772 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-17.0%
1973	0.7398 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-24.3%
1974	0.7704 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+4.1%
1975	0.6432 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-16.5%
1976	0.7009 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+9.0%
1977	0.5973 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-14.8%
1978	0.705 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+18.0%
1979	0.5321 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-24.5%
1980	0.4639 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-12.8%
1981	0.284 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-38.8%
1982	0.2845 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+0.2%
1983	0.264 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-7.2%
1984	0.1656 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-37.3%
1985	0.1332 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-19.6%
1986	0.1237 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-7.1%
1987	0.1332 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+7.6%
1988	0.127 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-4.7%
1989	0.1058 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-16.7%
1990	0.1 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-5.5%
1991	0.1072 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+7.2%
1992	0.1064 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-0.7%
1993	0.0963 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-9.5%
1994	0.067 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-30.4%
1995	0.0517 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-22.9%
1996	0.0477 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-7.7%
1997	0.0446 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-6.4%
1998	0.0435 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-2.5%
1999	0.0445 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+2.4%
2000	0.0432 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-3.1%
2001	0.0453 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+4.8%
2002	0.0532 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+17.5%
2003	0.0503 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-5.5%
2004	0.0458 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-9.0%
2005	0.0318 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-30.6%
2006	0.0249 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-21.7%
2007	0.0198 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-20.4%
2008	0.0172 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-13.1%
2009	0.0183 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+6.4%
2010	0.0159 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-13.4%
2011	0.0154 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-2.8%
2012	0.0147 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-4.3%
2013	0.015 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+1.6%
2014	0.0151 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+1.0%
2015	0.0155 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+2.3%
2016	0.0157 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+1.4%
2017	0.0167 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+6.3%
2018	0.0161 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-3.7%
2019	0.0185 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+14.9%
2020	0.0191 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+3.5%
2021	0.0173 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	-9.3%
2022	0.0185 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+6.6%
2023	0.0191 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	+3.7%

China compared with similar countries

China's 0.0191 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 0.0152 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP, 1.3× the median. (49 countries reporting)
China's 0.0191 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 0.016 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP, 1.2× the median. (19 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

Decade	Average	Lowest	Highest	Years
1960s	1.04 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	0.7572 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	1.18 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	10
1970s	0.7952 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	0.5321 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	1.18 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	10
1980s	0.2085 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	0.1058 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	0.4639 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	10
1990s	0.0709 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	0.0435 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	0.1072 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	10
2000s	0.035 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	0.0172 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	0.0532 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	10
2010s	0.0158 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	0.0147 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	0.0185 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	10
2020s	0.0185 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	0.0173 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	0.0191 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP	4

Countries ranked near China

67 Bulgaria 0.0195 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP compare
68 Vietnam 0.0195 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP compare
69 Hungary 0.0193 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP compare
71 Cyprus 0.0189 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP compare
72 Chile 0.0188 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP compare
73 Belarus 0.0188 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP compare

See the full ranking of 170 places →

More reference data data for China

Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 49.4 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 75.5 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 303.29 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 18.8 (2050)
Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 303.29 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 165.62 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 206.2 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 350.74 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 1,480 (2050)
Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 102.37 (2050)

All data for China →

Frequently asked questions

What is military spending, per unit of gdp in China?: Military spending, per unit of gdp in China was 0.0191 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP in 2023, according to Statizoid (derived).
What is the highest military spending, per unit of gdp recorded in China?: The highest recorded value was 1.18 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP in 1968.
What is the lowest military spending, per unit of gdp recorded in China?: The lowest recorded value was 0.0147 constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP in 2012.
How does China rank for military spending, per unit of gdp?: China ranks 70th out of 170 countries with data for 2023.
Is military spending, per unit of gdp rising or falling in China?: Over the last ten years it is up 27.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this China data come from?: The figures come from Statizoid (derived), published as part of Military spending, per unit of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Military spending, per unit of GDP in China. Statizoid, drawing on Statizoid (derived). Retrieved 21 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/military-spending-per-unit-of-gdp-2/china/

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How this figure is calculated

Military spending divided by GDP (current US$), matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.

Military spending ÷ GDP (current US$)

Computed from

Military spending Barnum et al. – Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data
GDP Country official statistics, National Statistical Organizations and/or Central Banks

Statizoid computes this series; the underlying measurements belong to the publishers named above. The arithmetic is applied to every country and year where both inputs report, and nothing is estimated unless the page says so.

About this data

Indicator: Military spending, per unit of GDP
Unit: constant 2022 US$ per US$ of GDP
Source: Statizoid (derived)
Licence: Derived by Statizoid from the sources named on the page
Coverage: 170 places, 9,064 data points, 1960–2023
Last refreshed: 16 September 2026

Military spending divided by GDP (current US$), matched on country and year. Neither publisher issues this ratio as a series; it is computed here from both.