China vs Iran Military Comparison
Side-by-side military strength: active personnel, defense budgets, air force aircraft, and naval assets.
China
2M active troops
$300B budget
VS
Iran
600K active troops
$20B budget
5,651
Tanks
1,650
35,000
Armored Vehicles
2,500
10,366
Artillery
2,322
2,430
Rocket Systems
1,900
1,200
Fighter Jets
196
912
Helicopters
152
777
Warships
398
79
Submarines
19
Nuclear Arsenal
China
LARGEST
500
WARHEADS
Iran
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Warheads Over Time
Estimated total warhead inventories — Federation of American Scientists / SIPRI
Defense Budget vs GDP
Historical defense spending and how it compares to each country's GDP. The % of GDP view normalises for economic size so smaller economies aren't drowned out by absolute dollar figures.
Defense Budget Over Time ($B)
Defense Budget as % of GDP
Source: World Bank Open Data API (MS.MIL.XPND.CD)
Military Active Personnel
China
LARGEST
2.04M
TROOPS
Iran
28.3% OF LARGEST
575K
TROOPS
China has 3.54× the active personnel of Iran
Air Force Total Aircraft
China
LARGEST
3.29K
AIRCRAFT
Iran
16.8% OF LARGEST
551
AIRCRAFT
China has 5.96× the aircraft of Iran
Total Naval Assets
Land Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
China
|
Iran
|
|---|---|---|
| Active Personnel | 2,035,000 | 575,000 |
| Reserve Personnel | 510,000 | 350,000 |
| Total Military Personnel | 2,545,000 | 925,000 |
| Defense Budget (USD) | $292,000,000,000 | $19,600,000,000 |
| Tanks | 5,651 | 1,650 |
| Armored Vehicles | 35,000 | 2,500 |
| Self-Propelled Artillery | 4,120 | 292 |
| Towed Artillery | 6,246 | 2,030 |
| Rocket Projectors | 2,430 | 1,900 |
Air Force — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
China
|
Iran
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Aircraft | 3,285 | 551 |
| Fighters | 1,200 | 196 |
| Attack Aircraft | 1,600 | 0 |
| Transport Aircraft | 406 | 91 |
| Trainer Aircraft | 314 | 112 |
| Helicopters | 912 | 152 |
| Attack Helicopters | 281 | 12 |
Naval Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
China
|
Iran
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Naval Assets | 777 | 398 |
| Aircraft Carriers | 3 | 0 |
| Destroyers | 41 | 0 |
| Frigates | 49 | 7 |
| Corvettes | 72 | 3 |
| Submarines | 79 | 19 |
| Patrol Vessels | 220 | 230 |
| Mine Warfare Vessels | 36 | 5 |
See economy, trade, demographics, and more for this comparison.
View full China vs Iran comparison →
Data compiled from World Bank, IMF, Global Firepower, SIPRI, Numbeo, and Pew Research.
Last updated June 2026.
Sources & methodology