GlobalMilitary.net Open-source military intelligence Updated daily
Head-to-head

Military Strength: Flag of Ethiopia Ethiopia vs Flag of Mali Mali

Ethiopia (ranked #71 globally) holds a stronger overall military position than Mali (#108) on the ATLAS Index. Ethiopia fields 503,000 active troops — 39:1 Mali's 13,000. Ethiopia allocates $1B to defense compared to $1.2B for Mali.

ATLAS (Aggregate Total of Land, Air and Sea strength) Index face-off Full ranking →
Flag of Ethiopia EthiopiaWorld #71 22.5
ATLAS Index / 100

Ethiopia leads on 4 of 6 pillars

Flag of Mali MaliWorld #108 13.6
  • 61.0503K active troops Manpower10 % 27.813K active troops
  • 33.0410 battle tanks Ground forces20 % 16.810 battle tanks
  • 0.00 warships Naval power20 % 0.00 warships
  • 24.034 combat aircraft Air power25 % 18.112 combat aircraft
  • 0.00 warheads Nuclear deterrent10 % 0.00 warheads
  • 23.8$1B budget Defense budget15 % 18.8$1.2B budget
Ethiopia Mali 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
Ethiopia Mali Ratio
Defense budget $1B $1.2B 🇲🇱 1.1×
– share of GDP 0.7% 4.3% 🇲🇱 6.1×
Active personnel 503,000 13,000 🇪🇹 39×
Combat aircraft 34 12 🇪🇹 2.8×
Warships 0 0 —
– submarines 0 0 —
Main battle tanks 410 10 🇪🇹 41×
Nuclear warheads 0 0 —
Show full breakdown · 11 more rowsHide the 11 extra rows
Reserve troops 0 0 —
Paramilitary forces 0 20,000 🇲🇱
Military aircraft (all types) 117 66 🇪🇹 1.8×
– helicopters 31 9 🇪🇹 3.4×
Budget share of govt spending — — —
Budget per capita $8 $46 🇲🇱 5.9×
Population 135.5M 25.2M 🇪🇹 5.4×
GDP $126B $30B 🇪🇹 4.2×
GDP per capita $933 $1,193 🇲🇱 1.3×
Land area 1,096,630 km² 1,220,190 km² 🇲🇱 1.1×
Coastline 0 km 0 km —
Backbone systems most numerous in service
🇪🇹 EthiopiaSu-27 Flanker ×22T-54 / T-55 / TM-800 ×240
🇲🇱 MaliMiG-21 Fishbed ×9
Defense budget history Ethiopia ×1.9 · Mali ×1.9 since 2020
Military personnel history
Explore this matchup
Go deeper · same matchup, other lenses
Air forces
Change opponent
Ethiopia vsEritreaTunisiaSudanNigeriaKenya
Mali vsZambiaAngolaSouth SudanZimbabweChad
Related comparisons & rankings
Strongest militaries in the world (2026) Coalition Builder: compare alliances & blocs

Frequently Asked Questions

Who has more military personnel, Ethiopia or Mali?
Ethiopia has approximately 503,000 active military personnel compared to Mali's 13,000, giving Ethiopia a 39:1 numerical advantage.
Which country has more combat aircraft, Ethiopia or Mali?
Ethiopia operates 34 combat aircraft compared to Mali's 12. This includes fighters, strike aircraft, and multirole combat jets.
Which country spends more on defense, Ethiopia or Mali?
Mali has a larger defense budget at $1.2 billion compared to Ethiopia's $1 billion annually.
Do Ethiopia and Mali have nuclear weapons?
Neither Ethiopia nor Mali currently possesses nuclear weapons.
How do the tank forces of Ethiopia and Mali compare?
Ethiopia operates 410 main battle tanks compared to Mali's 10. Tank numbers reflect both active inventory and reserves.