In present day, all countries are strengthening their Largest Defense Budgets 2025 military forces and increasing defence budgets in response to the increased volatility and complexity of the geopolitical world.
The following are the top ten countries in defence spending for 2025, ranked by total annual defence expenditure budget capabilities.
1.US-$896 billion
In 2025, the US maintained its status as top military spender in the world, with 37% of the military spending worldwide. This amount to almost $997 billion in defense, constituting 3.4% of the GDP. It rose by 5.7% compared to the year 2023, and overall, there has been a 19% rise since 2015. In the USA, military expenditure is about 3.3 percent of GDP. In FY 2013-2016, India bought from the USA arms worth Rs 29000 crores. That is almost 50 percent of the Rs. 53,685 crore spent by India in these years. Here we must let it be known that social security has its dalliance with a trillion dollars by the USA, the most in the world.
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2.China-$266.85 billion
China is the second-largest spender on military equipment, accounting for 12% of the world’s military expenditures. The country had spent approximately $314 billion on its military in 2025. In a message from the desktop: “The commissioning doesn’t seem to be touchy at all. Although the day would attract the weal, it proved to differ; some hospitals could read the stoutly.Chinese military expenditures rose by 59% from 2015 to 2024. A 30-year record of uninterrupted spending levels set by China remains unparalleled in all the entries of SIPRI’s Military Expenditure Database.
Between 2012 and 2016, China was ranked third among the arms exporters of the world, surpassing Germany, France and the United Kingdom. In the years 2012-16, China’s arms exports rose by 74%.
3.Russia-$126 billion
At the number 3 spot, Russian military spending saw a 38% increase in 2025 at an estimated $149 billion, which is approximately twice the level of 2015. This amount accounted for 7.1% of Russia’s GDP and 19% of total government expenditures. Since the launch of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, the military budget of Russia has been getting less clear. The Russian Federation holds the third position globally, making up 5.5% of the total military expenditure.From 2013 to 2016, Russia, which has the highest rate of arms exports to India, saw an arms import worth Rs 8374 billion. India is buying weapons mostly from Russia after the US.
4.India-$75 billion
With India accruing the honor of being the world’s fourth-largest military spender in 2025, accounting for 3.2% of the world’s overall military expenditure, defense expenditure was $86.1 billion, increased by 1.6% from 2023, implying a 2.3% account in GDP.Since 2015, when it was 2.5% of GDP, the defense expenditure would have grown 42% over a decade. The country procuring paling import in arms, set aside 75% of the defense budget for purchasing new military equipment for the production of weapons within India.
All through 2014, India was the second-largest arms importer. It surpassed the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 2016 and retained its spot ever since. Currently, the import percentage for India stands at 14%, that is, a share in the global import of arms; India allocates approximately 1.6% of its GDP to defense.
5.Saudi Arabia-$74.76 billion
In 2025, Saudi Arabia budgeted $80.3 billion for defense, constituting 7.3% of the GDP and 3% of the global military expenditures. This is a 1.5% hike as compared to 2023, but also shows a 20% decline if the figures are projected back to 2015.To date, Saudi Arabia remains the largest military spender in the Middle East and seventh worldwide. The opposite trend, in military expenditure since 2015, stemmed from the decline of oil revenues from its record revenues.Research reveals that India has one of the largest importers of arms and ammunition.
Then, in 2016, India displaced Saudi Arabia to occupy the first position, which it has retained till date. As of now, the percentage of India’s imports was around 14 so as to stand at arms, world at shares; India spends around 1.6% of its gross national product (GNP) on defense.
6.United Kingdom-$71.5 billion
The United Kingdom, one of the top military spenders in the world, had a $81.8 billion budget in 2025, which signified a rise of 2.8% from 2023. About 3% of the global military expenditure is spent by the UK.During 2024, the country’s military expenditure remained at 2.3 percent of the gross domestic product.Considering that it has risen by 23% since 2015, therefore the current military budget is considerably higher than it was in 2015.
7.Japan-$57 billion
Japan has budgeted $55.3 billion for military expenditures in 2024, allowing one to set the 21% increase in 2023 and the 49% increase in 2015 as references.Therefore, this is the biggest single increase since 1952, traveling military expenditures to a level of 1.4% of GDP-the highest since 1958. The country enjoys the seventh ranking among the world’s military spenders, accounting for only 2% of total military expenditure.Currently, Japan is regarded as a country that cherishes peace. It is interesting to note that presently, this country does not rank among the world’s top 10 largest arms exporting countries, nor does it rank among the top importers of arms and ammunition.
8.Australia-$55.7 billion
Increases in Australian defence expenditure to 3.5 per cent of GDP would cost 100 billion Australian dollars ($65b) each year, which is 40 billion Australian dollars ($25b) more than what is currently being spent on defence, according to ABC News, an Australian state broadcaster. Through the AUKUS agreement with the US and UK, the Australian government is poised to contract for the construction of hundreds of billions worth of nuclear submarines manufactured in the US in the coming decades. Last month the national defense strategy for Australia was released, and a promise was made for a large spending increase that does not start until 2027-2028, with the defense expenditure going up to about AU$67.4 billion.
9.France-$55 billion
Military spending in France during the year 2025 soared by 6.1% to reach the figure of $64.7 billion, representing 2.1% of French GDP. Such an amount ensured that France became ninth in military expenditure worldwide and accounted for 2.4% of all world military spending. France’s military expenditure saw a rise of 21% since 2015. Lecornu told that in France ammo-buying would be raised by 27% and reach €1.9 billion, for the purchase of Meteor air-to-air missiles of MBDA, Mistral and Aster air-defense interceptors, Scalp cruise missile and other items including Exocet anti-ship missiles and heavy torpedoes. It will also increase the budget for a €500-million SAMP/T NG air-defense system developed jointly with Italy.
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10.Ukraine-$53.7 billion
Military expenditures in Ukraine, measured by the tenth ranking in the world for 2025, went up by 2.9 percent, $64.7 billion or 34 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product. Ukraine’s military expenditure trailed Russia’s military expenditure by 43 percent while it made up 54 percent of Ukraine’s total government expenditure. Ukraine remained in this position since the military burden stood at 34 percent, although 2024 did witness a slight dip from the whopping 37 percent one saw in 2023- highest in the world.It constituted 2.4% of global military spending.Officials announced that Ukraine plans to allocate 2.2 trillion hryvnias ($53.7 billion), or about 26% of its gross domestic product, for the defence and security budget next year.
2025 saw a rise in the global arms spending until it reached $2.46 trillion, reflecting the rise in geopolitical tensions and the changing nature of security threats. The United States, China, and Russia have continued to be the foremost spenders, with India placing fourth through its massive $75-billion budget encouraging further efforts in modernisation, self-reliance, and strategic defence upgrades.
The increasing investments in AI-driven warfare, cyber defence, and space security indicate a shift towards technologically advanced military capabilities. As alliances strengthen and regional conflicts intensify, global defence expenditures will continue to rise, shaping the future of warfare and national security policies worldwide.
