Military spending as a share of GDP in Poland
Poland: Military spending as a share of GDP was 1.7% in 2019. ◆ Volatile
Latest (2019)
1.7%
Change on year
up 7.1%
World rank
60th
of 172 countries
All-time high
25.0%
in 1946
All-time low
0.0%
in 1919
Years of data
97
1918–2019
Military spending as a share of GDP in Poland, 1918–2019
Source: Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Poland recorded 1.7% for military spending as a share of gdp in 2019.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 7.1% on the previous year and up 21.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military spending as a share of gdp in Poland peaked at 25.0% in 1946 and was at its lowest, 0.0%, in 1919.
Poland ranks 60th of 172 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Military spending as a share of GDP in Poland, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1918 | 0.0% | — |
| 1919 | 0.0% | -17.7% |
| 1920 | 0.2% | +698.2% |
| 1921 | 1.1% | +479.5% |
| 1922 | 1.2% | +2.6% |
| 1923 | 1.5% | +27.9% |
| 1924 | 1.5% | -1.4% |
| 1925 | 1.6% | +5.1% |
| 1926 | 1.4% | -11.8% |
| 1927 | 1.3% | -7.0% |
| 1928 | 1.2% | -2.5% |
| 1929 | 1.2% | -5.0% |
| 1930 | 1.1% | -5.6% |
| 1931 | 1.2% | +10.4% |
| 1932 | 1.3% | +6.2% |
| 1933 | 1.4% | +8.4% |
| 1934 | 2.0% | +39.5% |
| 1935 | 2.0% | +3.1% |
| 1936 | 2.0% | +0.1% |
| 1937 | 1.8% | -11.6% |
| 1938 | 1.9% | +8.1% |
| 1939 | 12.2% | +525.6% |
| 1945 | 20.0% | +64.2% |
| 1946 | 25.0% | +24.8% |
| 1947 | 21.2% | -15.2% |
| 1948 | 14.5% | -31.6% |
| 1949 | 15.1% | +4.0% |
| 1950 | 5.7% | -62.3% |
| 1951 | 3.8% | -32.9% |
| 1952 | 4.8% | +25.1% |
| 1953 | 5.5% | +15.5% |
| 1954 | 5.8% | +5.1% |
| 1955 | 5.7% | -2.2% |
| 1956 | 6.1% | +8.0% |
| 1957 | 5.3% | -12.6% |
| 1958 | 5.3% | -0.7% |
| 1959 | 5.4% | +1.1% |
| 1960 | 5.2% | -2.3% |
| 1961 | 5.5% | +5.1% |
| 1962 | 5.7% | +3.9% |
| 1963 | 6.2% | +8.1% |
| 1964 | 6.4% | +2.9% |
| 1965 | 6.5% | +1.9% |
| 1966 | 6.3% | -3.2% |
| 1967 | 6.3% | +0.7% |
| 1968 | 6.3% | -1.1% |
| 1969 | 6.4% | +3.0% |
| 1970 | 6.3% | -2.0% |
| 1971 | 6.8% | +7.5% |
| 1972 | 6.2% | -8.2% |
| 1973 | 5.2% | -16.7% |
| 1974 | 4.9% | -5.2% |
| 1975 | 4.3% | -12.0% |
| 1976 | 4.7% | +9.0% |
| 1977 | 4.8% | +1.7% |
| 1978 | 4.5% | -6.5% |
| 1979 | 4.1% | -8.2% |
| 1980 | 4.3% | +4.7% |
| 1981 | 4.8% | +11.3% |
| 1982 | 5.2% | +8.2% |
| 1983 | 5.4% | +3.0% |
| 1984 | 5.1% | -4.3% |
| 1985 | 4.5% | -13.1% |
| 1986 | 4.6% | +4.2% |
| 1987 | 4.0% | -14.6% |
| 1988 | 3.0% | -25.0% |
| 1989 | 2.9% | -3.3% |
| 1990 | 2.4% | -16.7% |
| 1991 | 2.0% | -16.7% |
| 1992 | 1.6% | -18.8% |
| 1993 | 1.4% | -12.6% |
| 1994 | 1.2% | -14.2% |
| 1995 | 1.3% | +4.8% |
| 1996 | 1.2% | -2.0% |
| 1997 | 1.2% | -1.6% |
| 1998 | 1.2% | +0.1% |
| 1999 | 1.1% | -8.7% |
| 2000 | 1.1% | -3.4% |
| 2001 | 1.1% | +4.9% |
| 2002 | 1.1% | +0.5% |
| 2003 | 1.2% | +1.4% |
| 2004 | 1.3% | +11.7% |
| 2005 | 1.3% | +1.3% |
| 2006 | 1.4% | +8.1% |
| 2007 | 1.6% | +13.5% |
| 2008 | 1.7% | +3.7% |
| 2009 | 1.4% | -15.0% |
| 2010 | 1.4% | -1.9% |
| 2011 | 1.4% | +3.8% |
| 2012 | 1.4% | -4.0% |
| 2013 | 1.4% | +4.1% |
| 2014 | 1.5% | +5.0% |
| 2015 | 1.5% | -4.0% |
| 2016 | 1.4% | -4.4% |
| 2017 | 1.5% | +8.9% |
| 2018 | 1.6% | +6.4% |
| 2019 | 1.7% | +7.1% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 2 |
| 1920s | 1.2% | 0.2% | 1.6% | 10 |
| 1930s | 2.7% | 1.1% | 12.2% | 10 |
| 1940s | 19.1% | 14.5% | 25.0% | 5 |
| 1950s | 5.3% | 3.8% | 6.1% | 10 |
| 1960s | 6.1% | 5.2% | 6.5% | 10 |
| 1970s | 5.2% | 4.1% | 6.8% | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.4% | 2.9% | 5.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.5% | 1.1% | 2.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.3% | 1.1% | 1.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.5% | 1.4% | 1.7% | 10 |
Countries ranked near Poland
- 57 Romania 1.8% compare
- 58 Uzbekistan 1.8% compare
- 59 Nepal 1.7% compare
- 61 Guinea-Bissau 1.7% compare
- 62 United Kingdom 1.7% compare
- 63 Georgia 1.7% compare
More economy & growth data for Poland
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant 2015 US$) 2.74 % change on previous year (2025)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant 2015 US$) 0.175 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant 2015 US$) 4,972 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant LCU), annual 2.74 % change on previous year (2025)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant LCU), per 0.6595 constant LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Industry (including construction), value added (constant LCU), per 18,744 constant LCU per person (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), annual growth rate 13.96 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.5974 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per capita 16,978 current US$ per person (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), annual growth rate 7.65 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military spending as a share of gdp in Poland?
- Military spending as a share of gdp in Poland was 1.7% 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 Poland?
- The highest recorded value was 25.0% in 1946.
- What is the lowest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Poland?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.0% in 1919.
- How does Poland rank for military spending as a share of gdp?
- Poland ranks 60th out of 172 countries with data for 2019.
- Is military spending as a share of gdp rising or falling in Poland?
- Over the last ten years it is up 21.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this Poland 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 — 97 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).