Japan vs South Korea Military Comparison
Side-by-side military strength: active personnel, defense budgets, air force aircraft, and naval assets.
Japan
200K active troops
$50B budget
VS
South Korea
600K active troops
$50B budget
579
Tanks
2,321
3,137
Armored Vehicles
3,100
658
Artillery
3,536
99
Rocket Systems
600
297
Fighter Jets
406
622
Helicopters
833
155
Warships
234
22
Submarines
22
Nuclear Arsenal
Japan
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
South Korea
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Estimated total warhead inventories — Federation of American Scientists / SIPRI
Defense Budget vs GDP
Historical defense spending and how it compares to each country's GDP. The % of GDP view normalises for economic size so smaller economies aren't drowned out by absolute dollar figures.
Defense Budget Over Time ($B)
Defense Budget as % of GDP
Source: World Bank Open Data API (MS.MIL.XPND.CD)
Military Active Personnel
South Korea
LARGEST
555K
TROOPS
Japan
44.5% OF LARGEST
247.15K
TROOPS
South Korea has 2.25× the active personnel of Japan
Air Force Total Aircraft
South Korea
LARGEST
1.58K
AIRCRAFT
Japan
91.7% OF LARGEST
1.45K
AIRCRAFT
South Korea has 1.09× the aircraft of Japan
Total Naval Assets
Land Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Japan
|
South Korea
|
|---|---|---|
| Active Personnel | 247,150 | 555,000 |
| Reserve Personnel | 56,000 | 3,100,000 |
| Total Military Personnel | 303,150 | 3,655,000 |
| Defense Budget (USD) | $49,100,000,000 | $46,700,000,000 |
| Tanks | 579 | 2,321 |
| Armored Vehicles | 3,137 | 3,100 |
| Self-Propelled Artillery | 166 | 1,836 |
| Towed Artillery | 492 | 1,700 |
| Rocket Projectors | 99 | 600 |
Air Force — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Japan
|
South Korea
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Aircraft | 1,449 | 1,581 |
| Fighters | 297 | 406 |
| Attack Aircraft | 287 | 0 |
| Transport Aircraft | 192 | 49 |
| Trainer Aircraft | 447 | 293 |
| Helicopters | 622 | 833 |
| Attack Helicopters | 119 | 112 |
Naval Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Japan
|
South Korea
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Naval Assets | 155 | 234 |
| Aircraft Carriers | 4 | 1 |
| Destroyers | 36 | 12 |
| Frigates | 10 | 13 |
| Corvettes | 6 | 34 |
| Submarines | 22 | 22 |
| Patrol Vessels | 6 | 111 |
| Mine Warfare Vessels | 22 | 11 |
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