Portugal vs United Kingdom Military Comparison
Side-by-side military strength: active personnel, defense budgets, air force aircraft, and naval assets.
Portugal
30K active troops
$4B budget
VS
United Kingdom
200K active troops
$70B budget
133
Tanks
227
1,080
Armored Vehicles
5,015
74
Artillery
215
0
Rocket Systems
44
24
Fighter Jets
137
33
Helicopters
332
41
Warships
76
2
Submarines
11
Nuclear Arsenal
United Kingdom
LARGEST
225
WARHEADS
Portugal
NON-NUCLEAR
0
WARHEADS
Warheads Over Time
Estimated total warhead inventories — Federation of American Scientists / SIPRI
Defense Budget vs GDP
Historical defense spending and how it compares to each country's GDP. The % of GDP view normalises for economic size so smaller economies aren't drowned out by absolute dollar figures.
Defense Budget Over Time ($B)
Defense Budget as % of GDP
Source: World Bank Open Data API (MS.MIL.XPND.CD)
Military Active Personnel
United Kingdom
LARGEST
153.29K
TROOPS
Portugal
17.6% OF LARGEST
27K
TROOPS
United Kingdom has 5.68× the active personnel of Portugal
Air Force Total Aircraft
United Kingdom
LARGEST
733
AIRCRAFT
Portugal
12.7% OF LARGEST
93
AIRCRAFT
United Kingdom has 7.88× the aircraft of Portugal
Total Naval Assets
Land Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Portugal
|
United Kingdom
|
|---|---|---|
| Active Personnel | 27,000 | 153,290 |
| Reserve Personnel | 211,700 | 81,500 |
| Total Military Personnel | 238,700 | 234,790 |
| Defense Budget (USD) | $3,800,000,000 | $68,400,000,000 |
| Tanks | 133 | 227 |
| Armored Vehicles | 1,080 | 5,015 |
| Self-Propelled Artillery | 18 | 89 |
| Towed Artillery | 56 | 126 |
| Rocket Projectors | 0 | 44 |
Air Force — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Portugal
|
United Kingdom
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Aircraft | 93 | 733 |
| Fighters | 24 | 137 |
| Attack Aircraft | 0 | 143 |
| Transport Aircraft | 19 | 288 |
| Trainer Aircraft | 17 | 175 |
| Helicopters | 33 | 332 |
| Attack Helicopters | 0 | 50 |
Naval Forces — Detailed Metrics
| Metric |
Portugal
|
United Kingdom
|
|---|---|---|
| Total Naval Assets | 41 | 76 |
| Aircraft Carriers | 0 | 2 |
| Destroyers | 0 | 6 |
| Frigates | 5 | 13 |
| Corvettes | 0 | 0 |
| Submarines | 2 | 11 |
| Patrol Vessels | 26 | 22 |
| Mine Warfare Vessels | 0 | 13 |
See economy, trade, demographics, and more for this comparison.
View full Portugal vs United Kingdom comparison →
Data compiled from World Bank, IMF, Global Firepower, SIPRI, Numbeo, and Pew Research.
Last updated June 2026.
Sources & methodology