Army / Ground Forces
- Tanks
- 330
- Armored vehicles
- 12,219
- Self-propelled artillery
- 40
- Towed artillery
- 339
- MLRS
- 37
2026 military profile
Nigeria Military Power
Africa · Rank #41 of 145
4.4Strength Scoreout of 100 — #41 globally
How this score is calculatedNigeria military overview
In the MilitaryDex 2026 data edition, Nigeria ranks #41 of 145 countries with an MSS score of 4.4/100. The profile reports 230,000 active personnel, 159 total aircraft, 330 tanks and 135 naval assets, supported by an estimated annual defense budget of $3.9B.
Its highest normalized MSS category is Navy (7/100); its lowest is Nuclear (0/100). These are relative inventory scores, not assessments of readiness or combat effectiveness.
Profile scope
- Data edition
- 2026
- Indicators
- 29 fields
- Country set
- 145
- Regional rank
- #7 of 38
- Missing data
- Shown as N/A
KEY MILITARY STATISTICS
Active troops
230,000
↑42% vs avg
Reserve troops
0
Total aircraft
159
↓56% vs avg
Naval assets
135
↑188% vs avg
Defense budget
$3.9B
Nuclear warheads
0
Regional and population context
Rank in Africa
#7
of 38 profiles
Population
237,527,782
World Bank 2025
Nominal GDP
$290.8B
World Bank 2025
Land area
910,770 km²
World Bank 2023
Budget per resident
$16.419
derived from reported budget and population
Active troops per 1,000
0.97
population-normalized
Regional medians
30,770 troops
38.5 aircraft
Army, air force and navy inventory
Air Force
- Total aircraft
- 159
- Fighters
- 14
- Attack aircraft
- 24
- Transport aircraft
- 52
- Helicopters
- 69
- Attack helicopters
- 15
Navy
- Total vessels
- 135
- Aircraft carriers
- 0
- Destroyers
- 0
- Submarines
- 0
- Frigates
- 1
- Patrol vessels
- 132
MSS category profile
Normalized against the largest value in the 2026 country set. The listed weight is each category's contribution to the overall score.
Manpower (25% weight)6/100
Air Force (20% weight)1/100
Navy (15% weight)7/100
Army (15% weight)4/100
Financial (15% weight)1/100
Nuclear (10% weight)0/100
Compare Nigeria
Nigeria military power FAQ
What is Nigeria's military rank in 2026?
MilitaryDex ranks Nigeria #41 of 145 countries using its inventory-based MSS formula. This is a MilitaryDex calculation, not an official government ranking.
How large are Nigeria's armed forces?
The current profile reports 230,000 active personnel, 0 reserve personnel and 50,000 paramilitary personnel.
Does a higher score mean Nigeria would win a war?
No. MSS summarizes selected inventory and spending figures. It does not model readiness, training, geography, alliances, logistics, doctrine, technology quality or political objectives.