Top 10 Most Powerful Militaries in the World in 2024: Updated

The safety and security of a country depend on its military forces. The military’s responsibility is to protect the territorial integrity of the country on land, air, and sea. To achieve this, different countries of the world earmark a large sum of money in the annual budget for defense. This money is used in training military personnel, acquisition of tools and weapons, etc.  In this post, we’ll tell you the 10 Most Powerful Militaries in the World in 2024.

Based on the military strength, the country with the Power Index (‘PwrIndx’) score of 0.000 is considered the strongest. The military strength of countries is compared with this score. However, obtaining a perfect score is not realistic for any country in the scope of the current GFP formulation. As such, the smaller the PwrIndx index score, the more powerful the country’s military strength.

In terms of the overall power of military forces, the USA tops the chart clearly. The United States has the most powerful military force in the world with a PwrIndx index score of 0.0712. Russia (0.0714),  China (0.0722), India (0.1025), and the UK (0.1425) complete the top 5 list. China has the largest military manpower, with over 2 million active personnel. In contrast, the USA has a significantly less number, with only 1.5 million active military personnel.

Read Also: Top 10 Most Technologically Advanced Countries in the world

Top 10 Most Powerful Military in the World

Here’s the list of the top 10 most powerful military in the world in 2024, according to the most recent information obtained from Global Firepower Ranking.

1. United State of America
2. Russia
3. China
4. India
5. Japan
6. South Korea
7. France
8. United Kingdom
9. Turkey
10. Italy

1. United States of America (PwrIndx Score: 0.0712)

The United States has the most powerful military force in the world, with a score of 0.0712. At the time of writing this post, the country has 10 military aircraft carriers and highly advanced military technology such as the new rail gun.

There are 1,400, 000 active frontline military personnel in the US. The country also has a total of 8,848 tanks, 13, 892 aircraft, and 72 submarines, the most of any other country in the world.

In addition, the United States possesses a sizable and well-trained human force, the most aircraft in the world, cutting-edge technology such as the Navy’s new rail gun, and, of course, the world’s most extensive nuclear arsenal.

For the foreseeable future, the US will continue to have the most dominant military force in the world thanks to its spending power, a large collection of combat units, and elite Special Forces, according to Richard Douglas writing on security issues.

2. Russia (PwrIndx Score: 0.0714)

In terms of the overall power of military forces, Russia has a PwrIndx score of 0.0714 to emerge as the second most powerful military force in the world.

Russia possesses 12, 950 tanks, about 1 million active military personnel, 27,038 armored vehicles, 6, 083 units of self-propelled artillery, and 3,860 rocket projectors on land to emerge as the country with the second most powerful military force in the world.

Russia’s air force alone consists of 873 fighter planes and 531 assault helicopters in the skies above. On the sea, Russia has 62 submarines and 48 mine warfare ships.

Russia’s tank fleet is second to none in the world. The aircraft fleet is only second to the US and the submarine fleet is the third-largest in the world. Russia remains the military power of the former Soviet Union.

 3. China (PwrIndx Score: 0.0722)

China has the third-largest military force in the world. The available manpower consists of over 50% of the total population with over 2 million active personnel.

China has 3, 205 tanks, 35, 000 armored vehicles, and 2,250 nuclear weapons. In the marine sector, China has 46 frigates, 72 corvettes, 79 submarines, and 123 patrol vessels.

China’s military has greatly risen both in strength and capabilities. In terms of the total manpower, China has the largest military and possesses the second-largest tank (second only to Russia) and submarine (second only to the USA) fleets in the world.

China is currently developing a range of potentially game-changing military technologies including ballistic missiles and fifth-generation aircraft.

4. India (PwrIndx Score: 0.1025)

With a PwrIndx score of 0.1025, India has the fourth most powerful military forces in the world. India has an estimated 1,444,000 active military personnel. With armored tanks of 4,292 and towed artillery of  4, 060, India has the fourth-strongest military might in the world.

India further boosts one of the largest manpower in the world. Altogether, India has 1.455 million troops on the ground, 4,740 battle tanks, one aircraft carrier, 35 battleships, 14 nuclear submarines, 841 aircraft, and 150 nuclear weapons.

5. United Kingdom (PwrIndx Score: 0.1435)

Despite the reduction in the size of its military personnel, Britain still finds itself in the top 10 most powerful military in the world, occupying the fifth position on the list with a PwrIndx score of 0.1435, according to GFP ranking.

Britain has one of the most powerful ammunition in the world. It has the HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier which can transport 40 F-35B joint strike fighters across the world.

The UK military has four branches: the British Army, the Royal Navy, the Royal Air Force, and the Royal Marines. There are over 149 thousand active military personnel in the UK armed forces

 6. South Korea (PwrIndx Score: 0.1505)

The Republic of South Korea has one of the largest and most powerful standing military forces in the world. The country has a personnel strength of 3,750,000. The country further boosts several armored tanks, aircraft, and submarines.

South Korea has 2,381 tanks, 1,412 aircraft, and 13 submarines, making it the sixth-most powerful military in the world.

7. Pakistan (PwrIndx Score: 0.1694)

Pakistan is among the countries with the strongest military forces. The country’s military might comprises 617, 000 active frontline peronnel, 2,924 tanks, 914 aircraft, and 8 submarines.

In terms of the overall power of military forces, Pakistan has a PwrIndx score of 0.1694 to emerge as one of the most powerful military forces in the world.

In addition, Pakistan is thought to be building nuclear weapons at a fast enough rate that it could have the world’s third largest nuclear arsenal within the following decade.

8. Japan (PwrIndx Score: 0.1711)

Claiming the eighth spot is Japan with overall military power score of 0.1711.

Japan has rapidly stepped up its military role in its alliance with Washington and has made more purchases of costly American weapons and equipment, including fighter jets and missile interceptors.

There are 247, 000 active military personnel in the Japanese Armed Forces. It has 580 tanks on the ground, 2 aircraft carriers, 47 warships, and 22 submarines as well as 606 warplanes in the air. Although the Japanese military is relatively small, the country is extremely well equipped and has worked so hard to contain threats posed by China, North Korea, and Russia.

9. France (PwrIndx Score: 0.1848)

In terms of the number of military personnel, the French military is relatively small. However, the country has the overall score of 0.1848 to claim the ninth spot on the top 10 list. The French government spends so much money to ensure that its military is professionally trained.

France has 202, 780 active military personnel, 423 armored tanks, 1,264 aircraft, and 10 submarines. In addition, France has the largest armed forces in size in the European Union.

10. Italy (PwrIndx Score: 0.1973)

The Italian military completes our list of the top 10 most powerful military in the world, according to GFP. The country has two active aircraft carriers, and a large submarine and helicopter fleet. Its military has 165,500 active personnel. In the air, Italy flies 241 war-capable aircraft.

Conclusion

In addition to the countries listed above, there are other countries of the world that have strong military might but could not make the top 10 list. Some of these countries are:

1. Turkiye  (0.2016)

2. Brazil (0.2151)

3. Indonesia (0.2221)

4. Egypt (0.2224)

5. Ukraine (0.2516)

6. Australia (0.2567)

7. Iran (0.2712)

8. Israel (0.2757)

9. Vietnam (0.2855)

10. Poland (0.3406)