United Arab Emirates vs United States

United Arab Emirates vs United States: Military share of state spending

Military share of state spending: 17% of government spending in United Arab Emirates in 2014 and 8.3% of government spending in United States in 2025, by SIPRI estimates. In 2014 the value was higher in United Arab Emirates, by 6.6 percentage points, or 1.64 times that in United States.

% of government spending · SIPRI

United Arab Emirates vs United States: Military share of state spendingMilitary share of state spending: 17% of government spending in United Arab Emirates in 2014 and 8.3% of government spending in United States in 2025, by SIPRI estimates. In 2014 the value was higher in United Arab Emirates, by 6.6 percentage points, or 1.64 times that in United States.
United Arab EmiratesUnited StatesSIPRI estimate

What the numbers say

  • United Arab Emirates has been higher in every year both have figures for since 2001.

Every year

% of government spending · SIPRI

YearUnited Arab EmiratesUnited States
2025–8.3
2024–9
2023–8.7
2022–9
2021–7.9
2020–8.2
2019–9.5
2018–9.3
2017–9.4
2016–9.6
2015–9.9
20141710.4
201319.911.2
201217.412
201117.612.4
201018.712.3
200915.611.8
200816.712
200718.611.8
200620.612
200523.212.1
20042612
200323.411.3
200222.910.3
200122.39.6
200026.2–
199920.7–
199820.6–
199719.2–
  • Estimate

Each country on its own

Good to know

  • The part of everything the government spends that goes on its armed forces and defence, 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 150 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

United Arab Emirates vs United States

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