Saudi Arabia vs Syria

Saudi Arabia vs Syria: Military spending

Military spending: 6.48% of GDP in Saudi Arabia in 2025 and 4.06% of GDP in Syria in 2010, by SIPRI estimates. In 2010 the value was higher in Saudi Arabia, by 4.51 percentage points, or 2.11 times that in Syria.

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% of GDP · SIPRI

Saudi Arabia vs Syria: Military spendingMilitary spending: 6.48% of GDP in Saudi Arabia in 2025 and 4.06% of GDP in Syria in 2010, by SIPRI estimates. In 2010 the value was higher in Saudi Arabia, by 4.51 percentage points, or 2.11 times that in Syria.
Saudi ArabiaSyriaSIPRI estimate

What the numbers say

  • Saudi Arabia has been higher since 1982, when it overtook Syria.

Every year

% of GDP · SIPRI

YearSaudi ArabiaSyria
20256.48–
20246.41–
20236.38–
20225.72–
20216.43–
20208.41–
20197.35–
20188.42–
20179.5–
20169.24–
201512.57–
201410.26–
20138.71–
20127.51–
20117.13–
20108.574.06
20099.624.03
20087.353.55
20078.534.1
20067.854.39
20057.735.03
20048.085.54
20038.696.25
20029.765.41
200111.425.48
200010.535.45
199911.385.81
199814.315.81
1997115.88
19968.476.04
19959.286.95
199410.647.36
199312.477.24
199211.288.99
199112.4710.43
199014.026.87
198913.397.97
198815.157.85
198716.911.22
1986–14.45
19851716.56
19841917.69
198316.9714.64
198217.7215.56
198113.2714.55
198012.6117.25
197915.7715.93
197816.7414.71
197715.6514.5
1976–14.73
1975–15.95
1974–12.66
197310.8415.07
197210.0810.77
19718.648.44
19709.411.22
19699.5710.83
19688.0912.16
196711.518.21
196611.327.75
19657.698.88
19645.978.64
19635.9–
1962–13.47
1961–9.55
1960–10.52
  • Estimate

Each country on its own

Good to know

  • What the country spends on its armed forces and defence, as a share of its economy, by SIPRI’s count.
  • Source: Information from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) Military Expenditure Database, https://doi.org/10.55163/CQGC9685.
  • Marked points are SIPRI’s own: a dot where it gives the figure as its estimate, a ring where it calls the figure highly uncertain.
  • Ranks count the 151 countries with a value in 2025, highest first.

How the layers work, where their data comes from and what they can’t tell you: Countries through time

Saudi Arabia vs Syria

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