Australia vs New Zealand Military Comparison
Side-by-side military strength: active personnel, defense budgets, air force aircraft, and naval assets.
Australia
60K active troops
$30B budget
VS
New Zealand
10K active troops
$3B budget
59
Tanks
0
1,426
Armored Vehicles
106
129
Artillery
24
6
Rocket Systems
0
85
Fighter Jets
0
141
Helicopters
27
47
Warships
11
6
Submarines
0
Nuclear Arsenal
Australia
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
New Zealand
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Estimated total warhead inventories — Federation of American Scientists / SIPRI
Defense Budget vs GDP
Historical defense spending and how it compares to each country's GDP. The % of GDP view normalises for economic size so smaller economies aren't drowned out by absolute dollar figures.
Defense Budget Over Time ($B)
Defense Budget as % of GDP
Source: World Bank Open Data API (MS.MIL.XPND.CD)
Military Active Personnel
Australia
LARGEST
59K
TROOPS
New Zealand
16.4% OF LARGEST
9.65K
TROOPS
Australia has 6.11× the active personnel of New Zealand
Air Force Total Aircraft
Australia
LARGEST
465
AIRCRAFT
New Zealand
11.2% OF LARGEST
52
AIRCRAFT
Australia has 8.94× the aircraft of New Zealand
Total Naval Assets
Land Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Australia
|
New Zealand
|
|---|---|---|
| Active Personnel | 59,000 | 9,650 |
| Reserve Personnel | 28,850 | 2,300 |
| Total Military Personnel | 88,450 | 11,950 |
| Defense Budget (USD) | $31,800,000,000 | $3,000,000,000 |
| Tanks | 59 | 0 |
| Armored Vehicles | 1,426 | 106 |
| Self-Propelled Artillery | 54 | 0 |
| Towed Artillery | 75 | 24 |
| Rocket Projectors | 6 | 0 |
Air Force — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Australia
|
New Zealand
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Aircraft | 465 | 52 |
| Fighters | 85 | 0 |
| Attack Aircraft | 24 | 0 |
| Transport Aircraft | 47 | 11 |
| Trainer Aircraft | 168 | 14 |
| Helicopters | 141 | 27 |
| Attack Helicopters | 22 | 0 |
Naval Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Australia
|
New Zealand
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Naval Assets | 47 | 11 |
| Aircraft Carriers | 2 | 0 |
| Destroyers | 3 | 0 |
| Frigates | 8 | 2 |
| Corvettes | 0 | 0 |
| Submarines | 6 | 0 |
| Patrol Vessels | 13 | 9 |
| Mine Warfare Vessels | 6 | 0 |
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