Mexico vs Spain Military Comparison
Side-by-side military strength: active personnel, defense budgets, air force aircraft, and naval assets.
Mexico
300K active troops
$7B budget
VS
Spain
100K active troops
$10B budget
0
Tanks
327
695
Armored Vehicles
2,040
375
Artillery
152
0
Rocket Systems
0
33
Fighter Jets
139
273
Helicopters
164
189
Warships
46
0
Submarines
3
Nuclear Arsenal
Mexico
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Spain
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Estimated total warhead inventories — Federation of American Scientists / SIPRI
Defense Budget vs GDP
Historical defense spending and how it compares to each country's GDP. The % of GDP view normalises for economic size so smaller economies aren't drowned out by absolute dollar figures.
Defense Budget Over Time ($B)
Defense Budget as % of GDP
Source: World Bank Open Data API (MS.MIL.XPND.CD)
Military Active Personnel
Mexico
LARGEST
277.15K
TROOPS
Spain
43.4% OF LARGEST
120.35K
TROOPS
Mexico has 2.30× the active personnel of Spain
Air Force Total Aircraft
Spain
LARGEST
522
AIRCRAFT
Mexico
94.4% OF LARGEST
493
AIRCRAFT
Spain has 1.06× the aircraft of Mexico
Total Naval Assets
Land Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Mexico
|
Spain
|
|---|---|---|
| Active Personnel | 277,150 | 120,350 |
| Reserve Personnel | 81,500 | 15,150 |
| Total Military Personnel | 358,650 | 135,500 |
| Defense Budget (USD) | $7,000,000,000 | $14,900,000,000 |
| Tanks | 0 | 327 |
| Armored Vehicles | 695 | 2,040 |
| Self-Propelled Artillery | 0 | 96 |
| Towed Artillery | 375 | 56 |
| Rocket Projectors | 0 | 0 |
Air Force — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Mexico
|
Spain
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Aircraft | 493 | 522 |
| Fighters | 33 | 139 |
| Attack Aircraft | 0 | 87 |
| Transport Aircraft | 128 | 43 |
| Trainer Aircraft | 47 | 89 |
| Helicopters | 273 | 164 |
| Attack Helicopters | 0 | 18 |
Naval Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Mexico
|
Spain
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Naval Assets | 189 | 46 |
| Aircraft Carriers | 0 | 1 |
| Destroyers | 0 | 0 |
| Frigates | 8 | 11 |
| Corvettes | 0 | 0 |
| Submarines | 0 | 3 |
| Patrol Vessels | 143 | 23 |
| Mine Warfare Vessels | 0 | 6 |
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