Ranked: Military Spending Growth by Country in 2025
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Key Takeaways
- Spain and Norway increased military spending by roughly 50% in 2025, the fastest growth among the world’s top defense spenders.
- Europe dominates the rankings as NATO members accelerate rearmament following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
- The U.S., UK, and Israel were the only top-25 military spenders to reduce defense spending in 2025.
Europe’s military buildup accelerated sharply in 2025.
Among the world’s 25 largest defense spenders, Spain and Norway led annual spending growth with increases of roughly 50%, while Germany, Poland, Sweden, and Canada also posted gains exceeding 20%.
This graphic ranks the world’s largest military spenders by the real year-over-year change in defense expenditure between 2024 and 2025, using data from the SIPRI Military Expenditure Database.
Soaring Defense Budgets in Europe
European countries saw the biggest jumps in defense spending between 2024 and 2025, reflecting the continent’s growing concerns over external pressure. Spain (49.6%) and Norway (49%) led the way in year-over-year change, followed by Sweden (24.1%), Germany (23.9%), and Poland (23.4%<).
These defense spending increases stem from two key factors: Russian aggression in Ukraine and Eastern Europe, and growing U.S. pressure on NATO allies to raise spending.
The following data table ranks countries based on defense spending changes in 2025 in real terms, along with most recent total military budget in current U.S. dollars.
[table id=7608 /]
As the heavyweight within NATO, the U.S. has long called for European members of the alliance to boost their defense spending, particularly under the administrations of Donald Trump (2017–2021, 2025–present). Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 further spurred increases in defense spending.
While Spain and Norway posted the largest percentage increases, Germany may be the most consequential story. Europe's largest economy has raised defense spending to over $100 billion, seeking to narrow the gap with Moscow. Russia’s own military spending jumped 5.9%.
Europe’s Rearmament Dilemma
One question facing German and European policymakers as they seek to build world-class militaries of their own is procurement. Historically, European NATO members and countries like Canada, which boosted defense spending by 22.6% in 2025, purchased their top-shelf arms from U.S. defense manufacturers like Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Raytheon.
However, as U.S. pressure on these countries has mounted, there have been growing domestic calls to buy from more local contractors such as Leonardo, Rheinmetall, and Thales.
Leaders from Lisbon to Helsinki face decisions on whether to prioritize building up European defense technology capabilities or continue making the investments that have historically underpinned the transatlantic relationship.
Why Did the U.S., UK, and Israel Cut Spending?
Only three of the world’s 25 largest military spenders recorded lower defense spending in 2025: the U.S., the UK, and Israel. Their declines stand out because military budgets increased across most major economies, particularly in Europe.
Wartime can quickly change spending trajectories, as seen in Ukraine, where defense spending jumped 19.7% in 2025. The Eastern European country now spends more on defense than any other European country besides Germany and Russia.
The massive U.S. defense budget, meanwhile, is famously larger than that of the next seven military spenders: China, Russia, Germany, India, the UK, and Ukraine. In 2026, the budget is expected to top $1 trillion.
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