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Military Strength: Flag of Nicaragua Nicaragua vs Flag of Uruguay Uruguay

Uruguay (ranked #95 globally) holds a stronger overall military position than Nicaragua (#112) on the ATLAS Index. Nicaragua fields 12,000 active troops vs 21,000 for Uruguay, backed by 1,400 paramilitary. Uruguay's $1.7B defense budget is 17:1 that of Nicaragua ($0.10B).

ATLAS (Aggregate Total of Land, Air and Sea strength) Index face-off Full ranking →
Flag of Nicaragua NicaraguaWorld #112 12.7
ATLAS Index / 100

Uruguay leads on 3 of 6 pillars

Flag of Uruguay UruguayWorld #95 15.4
  • 23.512K active troops Manpower10 % 29.021K active troops
  • 27.689 battle tanks Ground forces20 % 22.631 battle tanks
  • 0.00 warships Naval power20 % 0.00 warships
  • 12.40 combat aircraft Air power25 % 17.46 combat aircraft
  • 0.00 warheads Nuclear deterrent10 % 0.00 warheads
  • 10.2$98M budget Defense budget15 % 23.0$1.7B budget
Nicaragua Uruguay 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
Nicaragua Uruguay Ratio
Defense budget $98M $1.7B 🇺🇾 17×
– share of GDP 0.5% 2.1% 🇺🇾 4.2×
Active personnel 12,000 21,000 🇺🇾 1.8×
Combat aircraft 0 6 🇺🇾
Warships 0 0 —
– submarines 0 0 —
Main battle tanks 89 31 🇳🇮 2.9×
Nuclear warheads 0 0 —
Show full breakdown · 11 more rowsHide the 11 extra rows
Reserve troops 0 0 —
Paramilitary forces 0 1,400 🇺🇾
Military aircraft (all types) 17 40 🇺🇾 2.4×
– helicopters 11 9 🇳🇮 1.2×
Budget share of govt spending — — —
Budget per capita $14 $502 🇺🇾 36×
Population 7M 3.4M 🇳🇮 2.1×
GDP $22B $85B 🇺🇾 3.8×
GDP per capita $3,173 $25,216 🇺🇾 7.9×
Land area 119,990 km² 175,015 km² 🇺🇾 1.5×
Coastline 910 km 660 km 🇳🇮 1.4×
Backbone systems most numerous in service
🇺🇾 UruguayA-37 Dragonfly ×4
Defense budget history Nicaragua ×1.3 · Uruguay ×1.6 since 2020
Military personnel history
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Air forces
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Nicaragua vsDominican RepublicParaguayEl SalvadorHondurasGuatemala
Uruguay vsBoliviaGuatemalaCubaEl SalvadorEcuador
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Frequently Asked Questions

Who has more military personnel, Nicaragua or Uruguay?
Uruguay has approximately 21,000 active military personnel compared to Nicaragua's 12,000, giving Uruguay a 1.8:1 numerical advantage.
Which country has more combat aircraft, Nicaragua or Uruguay?
Uruguay operates 6 combat aircraft compared to Nicaragua's 0. This includes fighters, strike aircraft, and multirole combat jets.
Which country spends more on defense, Nicaragua or Uruguay?
Uruguay has a larger defense budget at $1.7 billion (17:1 more) compared to Nicaragua's $98 million annually.
Do Nicaragua and Uruguay have nuclear weapons?
Neither Nicaragua nor Uruguay currently possesses nuclear weapons.
How do the tank forces of Nicaragua and Uruguay compare?
Nicaragua operates 89 main battle tanks compared to Uruguay's 31. Tank numbers reflect both active inventory and reserves.