China vs Estonia: Military spending as a share of GDP
China
2.3%
in 2019
Estonia
2.2%
in 2019
China rank
32nd
Estonia rank
35th
Military spending as a share of GDP over time
- China
- Estonia
How they compare
China currently reports 2.3% against 2.2% in Estonia, a difference of 0.1%.
The two have swapped places 10 times across 52 shared years of data; in 1918 it was China ahead.
China ranks 32nd and Estonia ranks 35th of 172 countries.
Across the 7 decades both report, China averaged higher in 4 and Estonia in 3.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | China | Estonia | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 1.2% | 1.0% | 0.2% | China |
| 1920s | 0.8% | 1.1% | 0.3% | Estonia |
| 1930s | 0.9% | 1.2% | 0.3% | Estonia |
| 1940s | 1.4% | 1.4% | 0.0% | China |
| 1990s | 2.1% | 0.7% | 1.4% | China |
| 2000s | 1.7% | 1.1% | 0.6% | China |
| 2010s | 1.8% | 1.8% | 0.0% | Estonia |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher military spending as a share of gdp, China or Estonia?
- China, at 2.3% against 2.2% in Estonia as of 2019.
- What is the difference in military spending as a share of gdp between China and Estonia?
- 0.1%, with China ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for China and Estonia?
- 52 years are reported by both, from 1918 to 2019.
- How do China and Estonia rank globally for military spending as a share of gdp?
- China ranks 32nd and Estonia ranks 35th of 172 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) β with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as Military spending as a share of GDP. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Military spending measured as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP).