Armed forces personnel, total in Philippines

Philippines: Armed forces personnel, total was 157,000 in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
157,000
Change on year
up 1.3%
World rank
40th
of 173 countries
All-time high
165,500
in 2009
All-time low
104,000
in 1994
Years of data
33
1985–2020

Armed forces personnel, total in Philippines, 1985–2020

050.0k100.0k150.0k1985200220201985: 114.8k1989: 112.0k1990: 109.0k1991: 107.0k1992: 107.0k1993: 107.0k1994: 104.0k1995: 149.0k1996: 150.0k1997: 153.0k1998: 160.3k1999: 152.5k2000: 148.5k2001: 151.0k2002: 150.0k2003: 150.0k2004: 146.0k2005: 147.0k2006: 147.0k2007: 147.0k2008: 147.0k2009: 165.5k2010: 165.5k2011: 165.5k2012: 165.5k2013: 165.5k2014: 165.5k2015: 165.5k2016: 165.5k2017: 153.0k2018: 153.3k2019: 155.0k2020: 157.0k

Source: The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Analysis

In 2020, armed forces personnel, total in Philippines stood at 157,000.

That represents a change of up 1.3% on the previous year and down 5.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, armed forces personnel, total in Philippines peaked at 165,500 in 2009 and was at its lowest, 104,000, in 1994.

That places Philippines 40th out of 173 countries with data for 2020, putting it in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 33 years of available data.

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1980s 113,400 112,000 114,800 2
1990s 129,880 104,000 160,300 10
2000s 149,900 146,000 165,500 10
2010s 161,985 153,000 165,500 10
2020s 157,000 157,000 157,000 1

Countries ranked near Philippines

  1. 37 Afghanistan 165,000 compare
  2. 38 Belarus 158,000 compare
  3. 38 Peru 158,000 compare
  4. 41 United Kingdom 153,000 compare
  5. 42 Greece 147,000 compare
  6. 43 Sudan 144,000 compare

See the full ranking of 219 places →

More public sector data for Philippines

All data for Philippines →

Frequently asked questions

What is armed forces personnel, total in Philippines?
Armed forces personnel, total in Philippines was 157,000 in 2020, according to The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies.
What is the highest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Philippines?
The highest recorded value was 165,500 in 2009.
What is the lowest armed forces personnel, total recorded in Philippines?
The lowest recorded value was 104,000 in 1994.
How does Philippines rank for armed forces personnel, total?
Philippines ranks 40th out of 173 countries with data for 2020.
Is armed forces personnel, total rising or falling in Philippines?
Over the last ten years it is down 5.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Philippines data come from?
The figures come from The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies, published as part of Armed forces personnel, total. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 33 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).

About this data

Indicator
Armed forces personnel, total
Source
The Military Balance, International Institute for Strategic Studies
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
219 places, 6,823 data points, 1985–2020
Last refreshed

Armed forces personnel are active duty military personnel, including paramilitary forces if the training, organization, equipment, and control suggest they may be used to support or replace regular military forces.