Army / Ground Forces
- Tanks
- 4,895
- Armored vehicles
- 47,792
- Self-propelled artillery
- 1,300
- Towed artillery
- 700
- MLRS
- 1,500
2026 military profile
North Korea Military Power
Asia · Rank #5 of 145
36.3Strength Scoreout of 100 — #5 globally
How this score is calculatedNorth Korea military overview
In the MilitaryDex 2026 data edition, North Korea ranks #5 of 145 countries with an MSS score of 36.3/100. The profile reports 1,320,000 active personnel, 837 total aircraft, 4,895 tanks and 264 naval assets, supported by an estimated annual defense budget of $4.8B.
Its highest normalized MSS category is Nuclear (48/100); its lowest is Air Force (9/100). 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
- #3 of 29
- Missing data
- Shown as N/A
KEY MILITARY STATISTICS
Active troops
1,320,000
↑713% vs avg
Reserve troops
560,000
Total aircraft
837
↑133% vs avg
Naval assets
264
↑463% vs avg
Defense budget
$4.8B
Nuclear warheads
60
Regional and population context
Rank in Asia
#3
of 29 profiles
Population
26,571,036
World Bank 2025
Nominal GDP
$15.0B
Legacy snapshot
Land area
120,410 km²
World Bank 2023
Budget per resident
$178.766
derived from reported budget and population
Active troops per 1,000
49.68
population-normalized
Regional medians
150,000 troops
168 aircraft
Army, air force and navy inventory
Air Force
- Total aircraft
- 837
- Fighters
- 341
- Attack aircraft
- 114
- Transport aircraft
- 177
- Helicopters
- 205
- Attack helicopters
- 20
Navy
- Total vessels
- 264
- Aircraft carriers
- 0
- Destroyers
- 2
- Submarines
- 24
- Frigates
- 2
- Patrol vessels
- 227
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)36/100
Air Force (20% weight)9/100
Navy (15% weight)23/100
Army (15% weight)41/100
Financial (15% weight)20/100
Nuclear (10% weight)48/100
Compare North Korea
North Korea military power FAQ
What is North Korea's military rank in 2026?
MilitaryDex ranks North Korea #5 of 145 countries using its inventory-based MSS formula. This is a MilitaryDex calculation, not an official government ranking.
How large are North Korea's armed forces?
The current profile reports 1,320,000 active personnel, 560,000 reserve personnel and 100,000 paramilitary personnel.
Does a higher score mean North Korea 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.