Canada vs South Korea Military Comparison
Side-by-side military strength: active personnel, defense budgets, air force aircraft, and naval assets.
Canada
70K active troops
$30B budget
VS
South Korea
600K active troops
$50B budget
82
Tanks
2,321
1,788
Armored Vehicles
3,100
126
Artillery
3,536
0
Rocket Systems
600
62
Fighter Jets
406
151
Helicopters
833
64
Warships
234
4
Submarines
22
Nuclear Arsenal
Canada
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
South Korea
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Estimated total warhead inventories — Federation of American Scientists / SIPRI
Defense Budget vs GDP
Historical defense spending and how it compares to each country's GDP. The % of GDP view normalises for economic size so smaller economies aren't drowned out by absolute dollar figures.
Defense Budget Over Time ($B)
Defense Budget as % of GDP
Source: World Bank Open Data API (MS.MIL.XPND.CD)
Military Active Personnel
South Korea
LARGEST
555K
TROOPS
Canada
12.3% OF LARGEST
68K
TROOPS
South Korea has 8.16× the active personnel of Canada
Air Force Total Aircraft
South Korea
LARGEST
1.58K
AIRCRAFT
Canada
29.3% OF LARGEST
464
AIRCRAFT
South Korea has 3.41× the aircraft of Canada
Total Naval Assets
Land Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Canada
|
South Korea
|
|---|---|---|
| Active Personnel | 68,000 | 555,000 |
| Reserve Personnel | 30,000 | 3,100,000 |
| Total Military Personnel | 100,000 | 3,655,000 |
| Defense Budget (USD) | $26,500,000,000 | $46,700,000,000 |
| Tanks | 82 | 2,321 |
| Armored Vehicles | 1,788 | 3,100 |
| Self-Propelled Artillery | 89 | 1,836 |
| Towed Artillery | 37 | 1,700 |
| Rocket Projectors | 0 | 600 |
Air Force — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Canada
|
South Korea
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Aircraft | 464 | 1,581 |
| Fighters | 62 | 406 |
| Attack Aircraft | 86 | 0 |
| Transport Aircraft | 60 | 49 |
| Trainer Aircraft | 103 | 293 |
| Helicopters | 151 | 833 |
| Attack Helicopters | 0 | 112 |
Naval Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Canada
|
South Korea
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Naval Assets | 64 | 234 |
| Aircraft Carriers | 0 | 1 |
| Destroyers | 12 | 12 |
| Frigates | 0 | 13 |
| Corvettes | 12 | 34 |
| Submarines | 4 | 22 |
| Patrol Vessels | 8 | 111 |
| Mine Warfare Vessels | 0 | 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