Military Strength: 
Costa Rica vs 
Honduras
Honduras fields 23,000 active troops — 2.3:1 Costa Rica's 10,000, backed by 60,000 reserves and 8,000 paramilitary. Costa Rica allocates $0.6B to defense compared to $0.6B for Honduras.
Key figures
| Costa Rica | Honduras | Ratio | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Defense budget | $572M | $556M | 🇨🇷 ≈ |
| – share of GDP | 0.6% | 1.5% | 🇭🇳 2.5× |
| Active personnel | 10,000 | 23,000 | 🇭🇳 2.3× |
| Combat aircraft | 0 | 20 | 🇭🇳 |
| Warships | 0 | 0 | — |
| – submarines | 0 | 0 | — |
| Main battle tanks | 0 | 0 | — |
| Nuclear warheads | 0 | 0 | — |
Show full breakdown · 11 more rowsHide the 11 extra rows
| Reserve troops | 0 | 60,000 | 🇭🇳 |
| Paramilitary forces | 9,800 | 8,000 | 🇨🇷 1.2× |
| Military aircraft (all types) | 0 | 61 | 🇭🇳 |
| – helicopters | 0 | 15 | 🇭🇳 |
| Budget share of govt spending | — | — | — |
| Budget per capita | $112 | $51 | 🇨🇷 2.2× |
| Population | 5.1M | 10.8M | 🇭🇳 2.1× |
| GDP | $95B | $37B | 🇨🇷 2.6× |
| GDP per capita | $18,587 | $3,426 | 🇨🇷 5.4× |
| Land area | 51,060 km² | 111,890 km² | 🇭🇳 2.2× |
| Coastline | 1,290 km | 832 km | 🇨🇷 1.6× |
Backbone systems most numerous in service
🇭🇳 HondurasA-37 Dragonfly ×9
Defense budget history Costa Rica ×1.3 · Honduras ×1.5 since 2020
Military personnel history
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who has more military personnel, Costa Rica or Honduras?
Honduras has approximately 23,000 active military personnel compared to Costa Rica's 10,000, giving Honduras a 2.3:1 numerical advantage.
Which country has more combat aircraft, Costa Rica or Honduras?
Honduras operates 20 combat aircraft compared to Costa Rica's 0. This includes fighters, strike aircraft, and multirole combat jets.
Which country spends more on defense, Costa Rica or Honduras?
Costa Rica has a larger defense budget at $572 million compared to Honduras's $556 million annually.
Do Costa Rica and Honduras have nuclear weapons?
Neither Costa Rica nor Honduras currently possesses nuclear weapons.