North Korea vs South Korea Military Comparison
Side-by-side military strength: active personnel, defense budgets, air force aircraft, and naval assets.
North Korea
1M active troops
$4B budget
VS
South Korea
600K active troops
$50B budget
5,895
Tanks
2,321
4,060
Armored Vehicles
3,100
7,750
Artillery
3,536
5,000
Rocket Systems
600
458
Fighter Jets
406
21
Helicopters
833
967
Warships
234
73
Submarines
22
Nuclear Arsenal
North Korea
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
South Korea
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Estimated total warhead inventories — Federation of American Scientists / SIPRI
Defense Budget vs GDP
Historical defense spending and how it compares to each country's GDP. The % of GDP view normalises for economic size so smaller economies aren't drowned out by absolute dollar figures.
Defense Budget Over Time ($B)
Defense Budget as % of GDP
Source: World Bank Open Data API (MS.MIL.XPND.CD)
Military Active Personnel
North Korea
LARGEST
1.28M
TROOPS
South Korea
43.4% OF LARGEST
555K
TROOPS
North Korea has 2.31× the active personnel of South Korea
Air Force Total Aircraft
South Korea
LARGEST
1.58K
AIRCRAFT
North Korea
59.8% OF LARGEST
946
AIRCRAFT
South Korea has 1.67× the aircraft of North Korea
Total Naval Assets
Land Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
North Korea
|
South Korea
|
|---|---|---|
| Active Personnel | 1,280,000 | 555,000 |
| Reserve Personnel | 600,000 | 3,100,000 |
| Total Military Personnel | 1,880,000 | 3,655,000 |
| Defense Budget (USD) | $3,600,000,000 | $46,700,000,000 |
| Tanks | 5,895 | 2,321 |
| Armored Vehicles | 4,060 | 3,100 |
| Self-Propelled Artillery | 2,250 | 1,836 |
| Towed Artillery | 5,500 | 1,700 |
| Rocket Projectors | 5,000 | 600 |
Air Force — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
North Korea
|
South Korea
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Aircraft | 946 | 1,581 |
| Fighters | 458 | 406 |
| Attack Aircraft | 80 | 0 |
| Transport Aircraft | 217 | 49 |
| Trainer Aircraft | 170 | 293 |
| Helicopters | 21 | 833 |
| Attack Helicopters | 20 | 112 |
Naval Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
North Korea
|
South Korea
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Naval Assets | 967 | 234 |
| Aircraft Carriers | 0 | 1 |
| Destroyers | 0 | 12 |
| Frigates | 3 | 13 |
| Corvettes | 0 | 34 |
| Submarines | 73 | 22 |
| Patrol Vessels | 438 | 111 |
| Mine Warfare Vessels | 25 | 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