State of Qatar vs United Arab Emirates Military Comparison
Side-by-side military strength: active personnel, defense budgets, air force aircraft, and naval assets.
State of Qatar
10K active troops
$10B budget
VS
United Arab Emirates
60K active troops
$20B budget
30
Tanks
538
440
Armored Vehicles
2,000
52
Artillery
274
28
Rocket Systems
88
36
Fighter Jets
156
44
Helicopters
265
123
Warships
72
0
Submarines
0
Nuclear Arsenal
State of Qatar
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
United Arab Emirates
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Estimated total warhead inventories — Federation of American Scientists / SIPRI
Defense Budget vs GDP
Historical defense spending and how it compares to each country's GDP. The % of GDP view normalises for economic size so smaller economies aren't drowned out by absolute dollar figures.
Defense Budget Over Time ($B)
Defense Budget as % of GDP
Source: World Bank Open Data API (MS.MIL.XPND.CD)
Military Active Personnel
United Arab Emirates
LARGEST
63K
TROOPS
State of Qatar
18.7% OF LARGEST
11.8K
TROOPS
United Arab Emirates has 5.34× the active personnel of State of Qatar
Air Force Total Aircraft
United Arab Emirates
LARGEST
552
AIRCRAFT
State of Qatar
20.7% OF LARGEST
114
AIRCRAFT
United Arab Emirates has 4.84× the aircraft of State of Qatar
Total Naval Assets
Land Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
State of Qatar
|
United Arab Emirates
|
|---|---|---|
| Active Personnel | 11,800 | 63,000 |
| Reserve Personnel | 0 | 0 |
| Total Military Personnel | 11,800 | 63,000 |
| Defense Budget (USD) | $11,900,000,000.0 | $22,755,000,000 |
| Tanks | 30 | 538 |
| Armored Vehicles | 440 | 2,000 |
| Self-Propelled Artillery | 28 | 181 |
| Towed Artillery | 24 | 93 |
| Rocket Projectors | 28 | 88 |
Air Force — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
State of Qatar
|
United Arab Emirates
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Aircraft | 114 | 552 |
| Fighters | 36 | 156 |
| Attack Aircraft | 12 | 0 |
| Transport Aircraft | 9 | 44 |
| Trainer Aircraft | 13 | 87 |
| Helicopters | 44 | 265 |
| Attack Helicopters | 24 | 28 |
Naval Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
State of Qatar
|
United Arab Emirates
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Naval Assets | 123 | 72 |
| Aircraft Carriers | 0 | 0 |
| Destroyers | 0 | 0 |
| Frigates | 0 | 7 |
| Corvettes | 6 | 0 |
| Submarines | 0 | 0 |
| Patrol Vessels | 117 | 32 |
| Mine Warfare Vessels | 0 | 2 |
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