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Military Strength: Flag of Denmark Denmark vs Flag of Ireland Ireland

Denmark (ranked #47 globally) holds a stronger overall military position than Ireland (#99) on the ATLAS Index. Denmark fields 14,500 active troops vs 9,500 for Ireland, backed by 44,000 reserves. Denmark's $14B defense budget is 11:1 that of Ireland ($1.2B).

ATLAS (Aggregate Total of Land, Air and Sea strength) Index face-off Full ranking →
Flag of Denmark DenmarkWorld #47 30.7
ATLAS Index / 100

Denmark leads on 5 of 6 pillars

Flag of Ireland IrelandWorld #99 14.7
  • 34.014K active troops Manpower10 % 24.89,500 active troops
  • 31.544 battle tanks Ground forces20 % 0.00 battle tanks
  • 40.252 warships Naval power20 % 24.224 warships
  • 30.927 combat aircraft Air power25 % 17.30 combat aircraft
  • 0.00 warheads Nuclear deterrent10 % 0.00 warheads
  • 32.7$14B budget Defense budget15 % 19.4$1.2B budget
Denmark Ireland Pillar scores 0–100 (weight under each label) over a headline figure from that domain · each conventional pillar read after its branch's availability proxy · Methodology
Key figures
Denmark Ireland Ratio
Defense budget $14B $1.2B 🇩🇰 11×
– share of GDP 3.2% 0.2% 🇩🇰 16×
Active personnel 14,500 9,500 🇩🇰 1.5×
Combat aircraft 27 0 🇩🇰
Warships 52 24 🇩🇰 2.2×
– submarines 0 0 —
Main battle tanks 44 0 🇩🇰
Nuclear warheads 0 0 —
Show full breakdown · 11 more rowsHide the 11 extra rows
Reserve troops 44,000 4,050 🇩🇰 11×
Paramilitary forces 0 0 —
Military aircraft (all types) 94 26 🇩🇰 3.6×
– helicopters 34 10 🇩🇰 3.4×
Budget share of govt spending — — —
Budget per capita $2,261 $222 🇩🇰 10×
Population 6M 5.5M 🇩🇰 1.1×
GDP $463B $722B 🇮🇪 1.6×
GDP per capita $76,970 $131,592 🇮🇪 1.7×
Land area 2,220,072 km² 68,883 km² 🇩🇰 32×
Coastline 21 km 1,448 km 🇮🇪 69×
Backbone systems most numerous in service
🇩🇰 DenmarkF-35 Lightning II ×27Leopard 2 ×44Thetis-class ×4
Defense budget history Denmark ×1.8 · Ireland ×0.8 since 2021
Military personnel history
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Denmark vsNorwayPortugalFinlandBelgiumSweden
Ireland vsSloveniaAlbaniaEstoniaBosnia and HerzegovinaSlovakia
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Frequently Asked Questions

Who has more military personnel, Denmark or Ireland?
Denmark has approximately 14,500 active military personnel compared to Ireland's 9,500, giving Denmark a 1.5:1 numerical advantage.
Which country has more combat aircraft, Denmark or Ireland?
Denmark operates 27 combat aircraft compared to Ireland's 0. This includes fighters, strike aircraft, and multirole combat jets.
Who has the larger navy, Denmark or Ireland?
Denmark has a larger navy with 52 warships compared to Ireland's 24.
Which country spends more on defense, Denmark or Ireland?
Denmark has a larger defense budget at $13.6 billion (11:1 more) compared to Ireland's $1.2 billion annually.
Do Denmark and Ireland have nuclear weapons?
Neither Denmark nor Ireland currently possesses nuclear weapons.
How do the tank forces of Denmark and Ireland compare?
Denmark operates 44 main battle tanks compared to Ireland's 0. Tank numbers reflect both active inventory and reserves.