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Military Strength: Flag of Somalia Somalia vs Flag of Yemen Yemen

Yemen (ranked #89 globally) holds a stronger overall military position than Somalia (#157) on the ATLAS Index. Yemen fields 40,000 active troops — 2.0:1 Somalia's 19,800. Yemen's $1.7B defense budget is 8.6:1 that of Somalia ($0.2B).

ATLAS (Aggregate Total of Land, Air and Sea strength) Index face-off Full ranking →
Flag of Somalia SomaliaWorld #157 4.5
ATLAS Index / 100

Yemen leads on 4 of 6 pillars

Flag of Yemen YemenWorld #89 17.2
  • 26.719K active troops Manpower10 % 33.440K active troops
  • 0.00 battle tanks Ground forces20 % 0.00 battle tanks
  • 0.00 warships Naval power20 % 23.216 warships
  • 0.00 combat aircraft Air power25 % 23.669 combat aircraft
  • 0.00 warheads Nuclear deterrent10 % 0.00 warheads
  • 12.1$199M budget Defense budget15 % 20.8$1.7B budget
Somalia Yemen 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
Somalia Yemen Ratio
Defense budget $199M $1.7B 🇾🇪 8.6×
– share of GDP 1.5% 4.0% 🇾🇪 2.6×
Active personnel 19,800 40,000 🇾🇪 2.0×
Combat aircraft 0 69 🇾🇪
Warships 0 16 🇾🇪
– submarines 0 0 —
Main battle tanks 0 0 —
Nuclear warheads 0 0 —
Show full breakdown · 11 more rowsHide the 11 extra rows
Reserve troops 0 0 —
Paramilitary forces 0 0 —
Military aircraft (all types) 0 134 🇾🇪
– helicopters 0 34 🇾🇪
Budget share of govt spending 20.8% 14.3% 🇸🇴 1.5×
Budget per capita $10 $58 🇾🇪 5.6×
Population 19.7M 41.8M 🇾🇪 2.1×
GDP $13B $22B 🇾🇪 1.7×
GDP per capita $661 $517 🇸🇴 1.3×
Land area 627,337 km² 527,968 km² 🇸🇴 1.2×
Coastline 3,333 km 1,906 km 🇸🇴 1.7×
Backbone systems most numerous in service
🇾🇪 YemenMiG-29 Fulcrum ×23
Defense budget history
Military personnel history
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Frequently Asked Questions

Who has more military personnel, Somalia or Yemen?
Yemen has approximately 40,000 active military personnel compared to Somalia's 19,800, giving Yemen a 2.0:1 numerical advantage.
Which country has more combat aircraft, Somalia or Yemen?
Yemen operates 69 combat aircraft compared to Somalia's 0. This includes fighters, strike aircraft, and multirole combat jets.
Who has the larger navy, Somalia or Yemen?
Yemen has a larger navy with 16 warships compared to Somalia's 0.
Which country spends more on defense, Somalia or Yemen?
Yemen has a larger defense budget at $1.7 billion (8.6:1 more) compared to Somalia's $199 million annually.
Do Somalia and Yemen have nuclear weapons?
Neither Somalia nor Yemen currently possesses nuclear weapons.