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Military Strength: Flag of Spain Spain vs Flag of Greece Greece

Greece (ranked #22 globally) holds a stronger overall military position than Spain (#23) on the ATLAS Index. Spain fields 120,350 active troops vs 142,700 for Greece, backed by 289,000 reserves and 7,400 paramilitary. Spain's $35B defense budget is 4.6:1 that of Greece ($7.4B).

ATLAS (Aggregate Total of Land, Air and Sea strength) Index face-off Full ranking →
Flag of Spain SpainWorld #23 41.8
ATLAS Index / 100

Greece leads on 3 of 6 pillars

Flag of Greece GreeceWorld #22 42.1
  • 49.0120K active troops Manpower10 % 54.8142K active troops
  • 47.8299 battle tanks Ground forces20 % 54.51,744 battle tanks
  • 44.343 warships Naval power20 % 43.969 warships
  • 43.2179 combat aircraft Air power25 % 43.9215 combat aircraft
  • 0.00 warheads Nuclear deterrent10 % 0.00 warheads
  • 48.0$35B budget Defense budget15 % 36.3$7.4B budget
Spain Greece 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
Spain Greece Ratio
Defense budget $35B $7.4B 🇪🇸 4.6×
– share of GDP 2.0% 2.9% 🇬🇷 1.4×
Active personnel 120,350 142,700 🇬🇷 1.2×
Combat aircraft 179 215 🇬🇷 1.2×
Warships 43 69 🇬🇷 1.6×
– submarines 2 8 🇬🇷 4.0×
Main battle tanks 299 1,744 🇬🇷 5.8×
Nuclear warheads 0 0 —
Show full breakdown · 11 more rowsHide the 11 extra rows
Reserve troops 15,150 289,000 🇬🇷 19×
Paramilitary forces 87,450 7,400 🇪🇸 12×
Military aircraft (all types) 518 732 🇬🇷 1.4×
– helicopters 183 300 🇬🇷 1.6×
Budget share of govt spending — — —
Budget per capita $699 $714 🇬🇷 ≈
Population 49.4M 10.4M 🇪🇸 4.7×
GDP $1.9T $281B 🇪🇸 6.8×
GDP per capita $38,627 $26,948 🇪🇸 1.4×
Land area 498,980 km² 130,647 km² 🇪🇸 3.8×
Coastline 4,964 km 13,676 km 🇬🇷 2.8×
Backbone systems most numerous in service
🇪🇸 SpainF/A-18 Hornet ×81Leopard 2 ×274Agosta-class ×1
🇬🇷 GreeceF-16 Fighting Falcon ×91Leopard 1 ×501Type 209-class ×4
Defense budget history Spain ×2.4 · Greece ×0.9 since 2021
Military personnel history
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Frequently Asked Questions

Who has more military personnel, Spain or Greece?
Greece has approximately 142,700 active military personnel compared to Spain's 120,350.
Which country has more combat aircraft, Spain or Greece?
Greece operates 215 combat aircraft compared to Spain's 179. This includes fighters, strike aircraft, and multirole combat jets.
Who has the larger navy, Spain or Greece?
Greece has a larger navy with 69 warships compared to Spain's 43. Spain operates 2 submarines while Greece has 8.
Which country spends more on defense, Spain or Greece?
Spain has a larger defense budget at $34.5 billion (4.6:1 more) compared to Greece's $7.4 billion annually.
Do Spain and Greece have nuclear weapons?
Neither Spain nor Greece currently possesses nuclear weapons.
How do the tank forces of Spain and Greece compare?
Greece operates 1,744 main battle tanks compared to Spain's 299. Tank numbers reflect both active inventory and reserves.