Military spending as a share of GDP in Nicaragua
Nicaragua: Military spending as a share of GDP was 0.6% in 2019. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2019)
0.6%
Change on year
up 3.4%
World rank
150th
of 172 countries
All-time high
14.2%
in 1986
All-time low
0.1%
in 1922
Years of data
120
1900–2019
Military spending as a share of GDP in Nicaragua, 1900–2019
Source: Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Nicaragua recorded 0.6% for military spending as a share of gdp in 2019.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.4% on the previous year and up 45.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military spending as a share of gdp in Nicaragua peaked at 14.2% in 1986 and was at its lowest, 0.1%, in 1922.
That places Nicaragua 150th out of 172 countries with data for 2019, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Military spending as a share of GDP in Nicaragua, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1900 | 2.9% | — |
| 1901 | 2.6% | -10.7% |
| 1902 | 2.5% | -2.4% |
| 1903 | 2.6% | +1.8% |
| 1904 | 2.2% | -13.0% |
| 1905 | 2.0% | -12.2% |
| 1906 | 1.8% | -8.5% |
| 1907 | 1.5% | -15.2% |
| 1908 | 1.4% | -5.8% |
| 1909 | 1.2% | -13.8% |
| 1910 | 1.1% | -10.9% |
| 1911 | 0.9% | -15.0% |
| 1912 | 0.8% | -9.5% |
| 1913 | 0.8% | -3.9% |
| 1914 | 0.5% | -32.4% |
| 1915 | 0.5% | -1.2% |
| 1916 | 0.5% | -17.0% |
| 1917 | 0.3% | -27.2% |
| 1918 | 0.3% | -20.0% |
| 1919 | 0.2% | -27.4% |
| 1920 | 0.1% | -30.2% |
| 1921 | 0.1% | +3.5% |
| 1922 | 0.1% | -10.6% |
| 1923 | 0.1% | +6.7% |
| 1924 | 0.1% | +11.4% |
| 1925 | 0.2% | +9.6% |
| 1926 | 0.2% | +7.5% |
| 1927 | 0.2% | -5.8% |
| 1928 | 0.2% | -7.2% |
| 1929 | 0.2% | +11.5% |
| 1930 | 0.2% | +4.4% |
| 1931 | 0.2% | -1.3% |
| 1932 | 0.2% | -5.1% |
| 1933 | 0.1% | -15.8% |
| 1934 | 0.2% | +23.9% |
| 1935 | 0.2% | -3.7% |
| 1936 | 0.2% | +1.3% |
| 1937 | 0.1% | -13.1% |
| 1938 | 0.3% | +88.0% |
| 1939 | 0.3% | +27.7% |
| 1940 | 0.5% | +42.8% |
| 1941 | 0.6% | +28.4% |
| 1942 | 0.8% | +21.6% |
| 1943 | 0.8% | +9.1% |
| 1944 | 1.0% | +16.5% |
| 1945 | 2.1% | +109.3% |
| 1946 | 3.1% | +51.5% |
| 1947 | 4.1% | +29.7% |
| 1948 | 5.0% | +23.9% |
| 1949 | 6.4% | +28.0% |
| 1950 | 6.0% | -6.4% |
| 1951 | 5.0% | -16.9% |
| 1952 | 4.6% | -7.3% |
| 1953 | 4.4% | -4.9% |
| 1954 | 3.9% | -10.6% |
| 1955 | 3.4% | -14.4% |
| 1956 | 2.6% | -22.1% |
| 1957 | 1.9% | -27.4% |
| 1958 | 1.5% | -22.9% |
| 1959 | 1.3% | -8.6% |
| 1960 | 1.3% | -0.7% |
| 1961 | 1.3% | -1.7% |
| 1962 | 1.3% | -1.8% |
| 1963 | 1.2% | -8.7% |
| 1964 | 1.1% | -6.2% |
| 1965 | 1.1% | -3.0% |
| 1966 | 1.0% | -5.2% |
| 1967 | 1.0% | +2.2% |
| 1968 | 1.0% | -5.8% |
| 1969 | 0.9% | -4.0% |
| 1970 | 0.9% | +0.8% |
| 1971 | 1.0% | +2.0% |
| 1972 | 0.8% | -15.2% |
| 1973 | 0.8% | -3.9% |
| 1974 | 0.8% | -1.3% |
| 1975 | 0.9% | +19.1% |
| 1976 | 1.0% | +4.2% |
| 1977 | 1.0% | +3.0% |
| 1978 | 1.1% | +14.2% |
| 1979 | 1.1% | +0.4% |
| 1980 | 1.4% | +22.3% |
| 1981 | 2.6% | +83.7% |
| 1982 | 5.4% | +112.0% |
| 1983 | 6.9% | +26.6% |
| 1984 | 10.5% | +53.1% |
| 1985 | 11.4% | +8.6% |
| 1986 | 14.2% | +24.8% |
| 1987 | 4.6% | -67.6% |
| 1988 | 3.6% | -21.5% |
| 1989 | 4.0% | +10.8% |
| 1990 | 10.6% | +164.2% |
| 1991 | 2.7% | -74.2% |
| 1992 | 2.2% | -21.0% |
| 1993 | 1.7% | -23.7% |
| 1994 | 1.0% | -39.7% |
| 1995 | 0.8% | -16.2% |
| 1996 | 0.7% | -17.0% |
| 1997 | 0.6% | -10.3% |
| 1998 | 0.5% | -12.6% |
| 1999 | 0.5% | -15.4% |
| 2000 | 0.5% | +0.8% |
| 2001 | 0.5% | +1.5% |
| 2002 | 0.5% | -0.5% |
| 2003 | 0.4% | -5.6% |
| 2004 | 0.4% | -3.5% |
| 2005 | 0.4% | -7.2% |
| 2006 | 0.4% | -3.7% |
| 2007 | 0.4% | -1.9% |
| 2008 | 0.4% | +3.8% |
| 2009 | 0.4% | -1.0% |
| 2010 | 0.4% | +5.0% |
| 2011 | 0.4% | +8.4% |
| 2012 | 0.5% | +15.4% |
| 2013 | 0.6% | +9.3% |
| 2014 | 0.6% | +4.0% |
| 2015 | 0.5% | -11.0% |
| 2016 | 0.5% | -6.8% |
| 2017 | 0.5% | +14.2% |
| 2018 | 0.5% | -0.7% |
| 2019 | 0.6% | +3.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 2.1% | 1.2% | 2.9% | 10 |
| 1910s | 0.6% | 0.2% | 1.1% | 10 |
| 1920s | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.2% | 0.1% | 0.3% | 10 |
| 1940s | 2.4% | 0.5% | 6.4% | 10 |
| 1950s | 3.5% | 1.3% | 6.0% | 10 |
| 1960s | 1.1% | 0.9% | 1.3% | 10 |
| 1970s | 0.9% | 0.8% | 1.1% | 10 |
| 1980s | 6.5% | 1.4% | 14.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.1% | 0.5% | 10.6% | 10 |
| 2000s | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 10 |
| 2010s | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.6% | 10 |
Countries ranked near Nicaragua
More economy & growth data for Nicaragua
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 2.29 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 3.5 Percent per annum (2029)
- Gross capital formation (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 17.13 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross capital formation (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.2426 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Gross capital formation (constant 2015 US$), per capita 770 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current US$), annual growth rate 6.49 % change on previous year (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.5486 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current US$), per capita 1,741 current US$ per person (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current LCU), annual growth rate 6.49 % change on previous year (2025)
- Imports of goods and services (current LCU), per unit of GDP 20.09 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military spending as a share of gdp in Nicaragua?
- Military spending as a share of gdp in Nicaragua was 0.6% in 2019, according to Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Nicaragua?
- The highest recorded value was 14.2% in 1986.
- What is the lowest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Nicaragua?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.1% in 1922.
- How does Nicaragua rank for military spending as a share of gdp?
- Nicaragua ranks 150th out of 172 countries with data for 2019.
- Is military spending as a share of gdp rising or falling in Nicaragua?
- Over the last ten years it is up 45.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Nicaragua data come from?
- The figures come from Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Military spending as a share of GDP. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 120 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Military spending measured as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP).