Military Comparison
Side-by-side military strength: active personnel, defense budgets, air force aircraft, and naval assets.
Nuclear Arsenal
Argentina
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Brazil
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Paraguay
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Uruguay
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
Brazil
LARGEST
366.5K
TROOPS
Argentina
19.7% OF LARGEST
72.1K
TROOPS
Uruguay
6.7% OF LARGEST
24.65K
TROOPS
Paraguay
4.1% OF LARGEST
14.95K
TROOPS
Air Force Total Aircraft
Brazil
LARGEST
679
AIRCRAFT
Argentina
38.0% OF LARGEST
258
AIRCRAFT
Uruguay
7.4% OF LARGEST
50
AIRCRAFT
Paraguay
5.0% OF LARGEST
34
AIRCRAFT
Total Naval Assets
Land Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Argentina
|
Brazil
|
Paraguay
|
Uruguay
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Active Personnel | 72,100 | 366,500 | 14,951 | 24,650 |
| Reserve Personnel | 0 | 1,340,000 | 164,500 | 0 |
| Total Military Personnel | 72,100 | 1,700,000 | 179,451 | 24,650 |
| Defense Budget (USD) | $4,300,000,000 | $19,700,000,000 | $340,000,000 | $1,240,000,000 |
| Tanks | 231 | 439 | 12 | 17 |
| Armored Vehicles | 828 | 1,896 | 84 | 120 |
| Self-Propelled Artillery | 40 | 56 | 0 | 0 |
| Towed Artillery | 124 | 550 | 54 | 30 |
| Rocket Projectors | 0 | 180 | 0 | 0 |
Air Force — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Argentina
|
Brazil
|
Paraguay
|
Uruguay
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Aircraft | 258 | 679 | 34 | 50 |
| Fighters | 43 | 43 | 0 | 12 |
| Attack Aircraft | 0 | 57 | 0 | 0 |
| Transport Aircraft | 35 | 110 | 15 | 15 |
| Trainer Aircraft | 41 | 168 | 12 | 13 |
| Helicopters | 41 | 151 | 7 | 10 |
| Attack Helicopters | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 |
Naval Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Argentina
|
Brazil
|
Paraguay
|
Uruguay
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Naval Assets | 42 | 112 | 34 | 32 |
| Aircraft Carriers | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Destroyers | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Frigates | 6 | 6 | 0 | 3 |
| Corvettes | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Submarines | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Patrol Vessels | 18 | 42 | 34 | 14 |
| Mine Warfare Vessels | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
See economy, trade, demographics, and more for this comparison.
View full Argentina vs Brazil vs Paraguay vs Uruguay comparison →
Data compiled from World Bank, IMF, Global Firepower, SIPRI, Numbeo, and Pew Research.
Last updated June 2026.
Sources & methodology