Military Comparison
Side-by-side military strength: active personnel, defense budgets, air force aircraft, and naval assets.
Nuclear Arsenal
India
LARGEST
172
WARHEADS
Pakistan
98.8% OF LARGEST
170
WARHEADS
Bangladesh
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Nepal
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Sri Lanka
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Warheads Over Time
Estimated total warhead inventories — Federation of American Scientists / SIPRI
Defense Budget vs GDP
Historical defense spending and how it compares to each country's GDP. The % of GDP view normalises for economic size so smaller economies aren't drowned out by absolute dollar figures.
Defense Budget Over Time ($B)
Defense Budget as % of GDP
Source: World Bank Open Data API (MS.MIL.XPND.CD)
Military Active Personnel
India
LARGEST
1.45M
TROOPS
Pakistan
45.3% OF LARGEST
654K
TROOPS
Sri Lanka
17.6% OF LARGEST
255K
TROOPS
Bangladesh
11.3% OF LARGEST
163.05K
TROOPS
Nepal
6.6% OF LARGEST
95K
TROOPS
Air Force Total Aircraft
India
LARGEST
2.18K
AIRCRAFT
Pakistan
63.6% OF LARGEST
1.39K
AIRCRAFT
Bangladesh
7.7% OF LARGEST
169
AIRCRAFT
Sri Lanka
3.4% OF LARGEST
75
AIRCRAFT
Nepal
1.0% OF LARGEST
21
AIRCRAFT
Total Naval Assets
Land Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Bangladesh
|
India
|
Nepal
|
Pakistan
|
Sri Lanka
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Active Personnel | 163,050 | 1,445,000 | 95,000 | 654,000 | 255,000 |
| Reserve Personnel | 0 | 1,155,000 | 0 | 550,000 | 5,500 |
| Total Military Personnel | 163,050 | 2,610,550 | 95,000 | 1,204,000 | 260,500 |
| Defense Budget (USD) | $4,300,000,000 | $81,400,000,000 | $392,000,000.0 | $12,300,000,000 | $1,890,000,000 |
| Tanks | 340 | 4,614 | 0 | 2,824 | 22 |
| Armored Vehicles | 1,268 | 12,000 | 45 | 4,686 | 213 |
| Self-Propelled Artillery | 18 | 100 | 0 | 570 | 25 |
| Towed Artillery | 190 | 4,175 | 95 | 1,467 | 76 |
| Rocket Projectors | 32 | 266 | 0 | 366 | 0 |
Air Force — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Bangladesh
|
India
|
Nepal
|
Pakistan
|
Sri Lanka
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Aircraft | 169 | 2,182 | 21 | 1,387 | 75 |
| Fighters | 44 | 538 | 0 | 357 | 23 |
| Attack Aircraft | 0 | 172 | 0 | 85 | 0 |
| Transport Aircraft | 26 | 250 | 8 | 173 | 24 |
| Trainer Aircraft | 38 | 359 | 2 | 338 | 20 |
| Helicopters | 61 | 812 | 11 | 332 | 8 |
| Attack Helicopters | 0 | 68 | 0 | 52 | 0 |
Naval Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Bangladesh
|
India
|
Nepal
|
Pakistan
|
Sri Lanka
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Naval Assets | 89 | 295 | 0 | 114 | 67 |
| Aircraft Carriers | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Destroyers | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Frigates | 6 | 13 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| Corvettes | 4 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Submarines | 2 | 17 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| Patrol Vessels | 26 | 139 | 0 | 18 | 49 |
| Mine Warfare Vessels | 5 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
See economy, trade, demographics, and more for this comparison.
View full Bangladesh vs India vs Nepal vs Pakistan vs Sri Lanka comparison →
Data compiled from World Bank, IMF, Global Firepower, SIPRI, Numbeo, and Pew Research.
Last updated June 2026.
Sources & methodology