Military Strength: 
Mauritania vs 
Niger
Mauritania (ranked #114 globally) holds a stronger overall military position than Niger (#136) on the ATLAS Index. Mauritania fields 15,850 active troops — 3.0:1 Niger's 5,300, backed by 5,000 paramilitary. Mauritania allocates $0.3B to defense compared to $0.4B for Niger.
ATLAS (Aggregate Total of Land, Air and Sea strength) Index face-off Full ranking →
MauritaniaWorld #114
12.5
ATLAS Index / 100
Mauritania leads overall, ahead on 2 of 6 pillars
NigerWorld #136
8.6
Mauritania
Niger
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
| Mauritania | Niger | Ratio | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Defense budget | $262M | $437M | 🇳🇪 1.7× |
| – share of GDP | 2.4% | 2.2% | 🇲🇷 1.1× |
| Active personnel | 15,850 | 5,300 | 🇲🇷 3.0× |
| Combat aircraft | 4 | 2 | 🇲🇷 2.0× |
| Warships | 0 | 0 | — |
| – submarines | 0 | 0 | — |
| Main battle tanks | 25 | 0 | 🇲🇷 |
| Nuclear warheads | 0 | 0 | — |
Show full breakdown · 11 more rowsHide the 11 extra rows
| Reserve troops | 0 | 0 | — |
| Paramilitary forces | 5,000 | 7,500 | 🇳🇪 1.5× |
| Military aircraft (all types) | 23 | 37 | 🇳🇪 1.6× |
| – helicopters | 4 | 17 | 🇳🇪 4.2× |
| Budget share of govt spending | — | — | — |
| Budget per capita | $49 | $16 | 🇲🇷 3.1× |
| Population | 5.3M | 27.9M | 🇳🇪 5.3× |
| GDP | $12B | $22B | 🇳🇪 1.9× |
| GDP per capita | $2,198 | $775 | 🇲🇷 2.8× |
| Land area | 1,025,520 km² | 1,266,700 km² | 🇳🇪 1.2× |
| Coastline | 754 km | 0 km | 🇲🇷 |
Backbone systems most numerous in service
🇲🇷 MauritaniaEMB-314 Super Tucano ×4
🇳🇪 NigerSu-25 Frogfoot ×2
Defense budget history Mauritania ×1.3 · Niger ×1.6 since 2020
Military personnel history
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Frequently Asked Questions
Who has more military personnel, Mauritania or Niger?
Mauritania has approximately 15,850 active military personnel compared to Niger's 5,300, giving Mauritania a 3.0:1 numerical advantage.
Which country has more combat aircraft, Mauritania or Niger?
Mauritania operates 4 combat aircraft compared to Niger's 2. This includes fighters, strike aircraft, and multirole combat jets.
Which country spends more on defense, Mauritania or Niger?
Niger has a larger defense budget at $437 million (1.7:1 more) compared to Mauritania's $262 million annually.
Do Mauritania and Niger have nuclear weapons?
Neither Mauritania nor Niger currently possesses nuclear weapons.
How do the tank forces of Mauritania and Niger compare?
Mauritania operates 25 main battle tanks compared to Niger's 0. Tank numbers reflect both active inventory and reserves.