China vs United Kingdom Military Comparison
Side-by-side military strength: active personnel, defense budgets, air force aircraft, and naval assets.
China
2M active troops
$300B budget
VS
United Kingdom
200K active troops
$70B budget
5,651
Tanks
227
35,000
Armored Vehicles
5,015
10,366
Artillery
215
2,430
Rocket Systems
44
1,200
Fighter Jets
137
912
Helicopters
332
777
Warships
76
79
Submarines
11
Nuclear Arsenal
China
LARGEST
500
WARHEADS
United Kingdom
45.0% OF LARGEST
225
WARHEADS
China holds
2.2×
the warheads of United Kingdom
Warheads Over Time
Estimated total warhead inventories — Federation of American Scientists / SIPRI
Defense Budget vs GDP
Historical defense spending and how it compares to each country's GDP. The % of GDP view normalises for economic size so smaller economies aren't drowned out by absolute dollar figures.
Defense Budget Over Time ($B)
Defense Budget as % of GDP
Source: World Bank Open Data API (MS.MIL.XPND.CD)
Military Active Personnel
China
LARGEST
2.04M
TROOPS
United Kingdom
7.5% OF LARGEST
153.29K
TROOPS
China has 13.28× the active personnel of United Kingdom
Air Force Total Aircraft
China
LARGEST
3.29K
AIRCRAFT
United Kingdom
22.3% OF LARGEST
733
AIRCRAFT
China has 4.48× the aircraft of United Kingdom
Total Naval Assets
Land Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
China
|
United Kingdom
|
|---|---|---|
| Active Personnel | 2,035,000 | 153,290 |
| Reserve Personnel | 510,000 | 81,500 |
| Total Military Personnel | 2,545,000 | 234,790 |
| Defense Budget (USD) | $292,000,000,000 | $68,400,000,000 |
| Tanks | 5,651 | 227 |
| Armored Vehicles | 35,000 | 5,015 |
| Self-Propelled Artillery | 4,120 | 89 |
| Towed Artillery | 6,246 | 126 |
| Rocket Projectors | 2,430 | 44 |
Air Force — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
China
|
United Kingdom
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Aircraft | 3,285 | 733 |
| Fighters | 1,200 | 137 |
| Attack Aircraft | 1,600 | 143 |
| Transport Aircraft | 406 | 288 |
| Trainer Aircraft | 314 | 175 |
| Helicopters | 912 | 332 |
| Attack Helicopters | 281 | 50 |
Naval Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
China
|
United Kingdom
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Naval Assets | 777 | 76 |
| Aircraft Carriers | 3 | 2 |
| Destroyers | 41 | 6 |
| Frigates | 49 | 13 |
| Corvettes | 72 | 0 |
| Submarines | 79 | 11 |
| Patrol Vessels | 220 | 22 |
| Mine Warfare Vessels | 36 | 13 |
See economy, trade, demographics, and more for this comparison.
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Data compiled from World Bank, IMF, Global Firepower, SIPRI, Numbeo, and Pew Research.
Last updated June 2026.
Sources & methodology