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Military Strength: Flag of Iraq Iraq vs Flag of Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia (ranked #12 globally) holds a stronger overall military position than Iraq (#36) on the ATLAS Index. Iraq fields 193,000 active troops vs 257,000 for Saudi Arabia, backed by 24,500 paramilitary. Saudi Arabia's $88B defense budget is 13:1 that of Iraq ($7B).

ATLAS (Aggregate Total of Land, Air and Sea strength) Index face-off Full ranking →
Flag of Iraq IraqWorld #36 33.9
ATLAS Index / 100

Saudi Arabia leads on 5 of 6 pillars

Flag of Saudi Arabia Saudi ArabiaWorld #12 49.2
  • 53.6193K active troops Manpower10 % 56.3257K active troops
  • 54.01,188 battle tanks Ground forces20 % 59.61,085 battle tanks
  • 19.859 warships Naval power20 % 42.567 warships
  • 32.953 combat aircraft Air power25 % 53.9384 combat aircraft
  • 0.00 warheads Nuclear deterrent10 % 0.00 warheads
  • 34.2$7B budget Defense budget15 % 60.5$88B budget
Iraq Saudi Arabia 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
Iraq Saudi Arabia Ratio
Defense budget $7B $88B 🇸🇦 13×
– share of GDP 2.5% 7.1% 🇸🇦 2.8×
Active personnel 193,000 257,000 🇸🇦 1.3×
Combat aircraft 53 384 🇸🇦 7.2×
Warships 59 67 🇸🇦 1.1×
– submarines 0 0 —
Main battle tanks 1,188 1,085 🇮🇶 1.1×
Nuclear warheads 0 0 —
Show full breakdown · 11 more rowsHide the 11 extra rows
Reserve troops 0 0 —
Paramilitary forces 266,000 24,500 🇮🇶 11×
Military aircraft (all types) 399 916 🇸🇦 2.3×
– helicopters 213 264 🇸🇦 1.2×
Budget share of govt spending — — —
Budget per capita $149 $2,381 🇸🇦 16×
Population 47M 37M 🇮🇶 1.3×
GDP $254B $1.3T 🇸🇦 5.0×
GDP per capita $5,410 $34,537 🇸🇦 6.4×
Land area 437,367 km² 2,149,690 km² 🇸🇦 4.9×
Coastline 58 km 2,640 km 🇸🇦 46×
Backbone systems most numerous in service
🇮🇶 IraqF-16 Fighting Falcon ×34M1 Abrams ×487
🇸🇦 Saudi ArabiaF-15EX Eagle II ×83M1 Abrams ×575Al Madinah-class ×4
Defense budget history Iraq ×1.2 · Saudi Arabia ×1.5 since 2020
Military personnel history
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Saudi Arabia vsUnited StatesIranYemenIsraelTaiwan
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Frequently Asked Questions

Who has more military personnel, Iraq or Saudi Arabia?
Saudi Arabia has approximately 257,000 active military personnel compared to Iraq's 193,000.
Which country has more combat aircraft, Iraq or Saudi Arabia?
Saudi Arabia operates 384 combat aircraft compared to Iraq's 53. This includes fighters, strike aircraft, and multirole combat jets.
Who has the larger navy, Iraq or Saudi Arabia?
Saudi Arabia has a larger navy with 67 warships compared to Iraq's 59.
Which country spends more on defense, Iraq or Saudi Arabia?
Saudi Arabia has a larger defense budget at $88 billion (13:1 more) compared to Iraq's $7 billion annually.
Do Iraq and Saudi Arabia have nuclear weapons?
Neither Iraq nor Saudi Arabia currently possesses nuclear weapons.
How do the tank forces of Iraq and Saudi Arabia compare?
Iraq operates 1,188 main battle tanks compared to Saudi Arabia's 1,085. Tank numbers reflect both active inventory and reserves.