Military spending as a share of GDP in Uruguay
Uruguay: Military spending as a share of GDP was 1.5% in 2019. ▬ Flat
Latest (2019)
1.5%
Change on year
up 5.3%
World rank
77th
of 172 countries
All-time high
3.2%
in 1982
All-time low
0.3%
in 1912
Years of data
138
1882–2019
Military spending as a share of GDP in Uruguay, 1882–2019
Source: Barnum et al. - Global Military Spending Dataset (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Uruguay recorded 1.5% for military spending as a share of gdp in 2019.
The figure is up 5.3% on the previous year and up 41.8% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military spending as a share of gdp in Uruguay peaked at 3.2% in 1982 and was at its lowest, 0.3%, in 1912.
Uruguay ranks 77th of 172 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
Military spending as a share of GDP in Uruguay, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1882 | 2.3% | — |
| 1883 | 2.2% | -1.6% |
| 1884 | 2.3% | +2.6% |
| 1885 | 2.2% | -3.7% |
| 1886 | 2.2% | -1.0% |
| 1887 | 2.0% | -8.6% |
| 1888 | 2.0% | -1.9% |
| 1889 | 2.0% | +3.6% |
| 1890 | 2.2% | +9.5% |
| 1891 | 1.8% | -20.3% |
| 1892 | 1.5% | -13.5% |
| 1893 | 1.3% | -17.3% |
| 1894 | 1.2% | -9.9% |
| 1895 | 1.2% | +1.1% |
| 1896 | 1.1% | -3.4% |
| 1897 | 1.1% | -4.6% |
| 1898 | 1.1% | +2.4% |
| 1899 | 1.1% | -3.0% |
| 1900 | 1.0% | -3.6% |
| 1901 | 1.0% | -6.5% |
| 1902 | 0.9% | -3.6% |
| 1903 | 0.9% | -5.4% |
| 1904 | 1.0% | +15.6% |
| 1905 | 1.2% | +14.1% |
| 1906 | 1.1% | -1.3% |
| 1907 | 1.2% | +1.8% |
| 1908 | 1.2% | +5.3% |
| 1909 | 1.3% | +4.9% |
| 1910 | 1.3% | -1.2% |
| 1911 | 1.2% | -1.9% |
| 1912 | 0.3% | -74.5% |
| 1913 | 1.6% | +401.5% |
| 1914 | 1.4% | -9.8% |
| 1915 | 1.7% | +21.6% |
| 1916 | 1.7% | -3.4% |
| 1917 | 1.4% | -14.2% |
| 1918 | 1.3% | -8.9% |
| 1919 | 1.1% | -19.9% |
| 1920 | 0.9% | -10.7% |
| 1921 | 1.1% | +14.0% |
| 1922 | 1.0% | -3.1% |
| 1923 | 1.0% | -4.7% |
| 1924 | 0.9% | -5.0% |
| 1925 | 1.0% | +6.9% |
| 1926 | 1.1% | +6.5% |
| 1927 | 1.1% | +2.4% |
| 1928 | 1.1% | +3.8% |
| 1929 | 1.0% | -9.4% |
| 1930 | 0.9% | -11.1% |
| 1931 | 0.9% | -5.7% |
| 1932 | 0.8% | -7.1% |
| 1933 | 0.8% | -2.8% |
| 1934 | 0.9% | +19.4% |
| 1935 | 0.8% | -14.3% |
| 1936 | 0.8% | -4.5% |
| 1937 | 0.8% | -1.4% |
| 1938 | 0.8% | +3.4% |
| 1939 | 0.8% | -3.3% |
| 1940 | 1.0% | +36.3% |
| 1941 | 1.2% | +14.4% |
| 1942 | 1.4% | +15.9% |
| 1943 | 1.3% | -2.4% |
| 1944 | 1.3% | -2.9% |
| 1945 | 1.4% | +7.5% |
| 1946 | 1.1% | -18.0% |
| 1947 | 1.0% | -9.5% |
| 1948 | 0.9% | -8.9% |
| 1949 | 1.1% | +19.9% |
| 1950 | 1.1% | -4.2% |
| 1951 | 1.1% | -1.4% |
| 1952 | 1.3% | +25.8% |
| 1953 | 1.3% | -2.6% |
| 1954 | 1.3% | +1.2% |
| 1955 | 1.3% | +0.9% |
| 1956 | 1.4% | +6.3% |
| 1957 | 1.4% | +2.3% |
| 1958 | 1.4% | +0.1% |
| 1959 | 1.1% | -20.7% |
| 1960 | 0.7% | -36.8% |
| 1961 | 0.7% | +0.6% |
| 1962 | 0.8% | +11.8% |
| 1963 | 1.1% | +29.5% |
| 1964 | 1.1% | +5.6% |
| 1965 | 1.2% | +8.6% |
| 1966 | 1.0% | -18.1% |
| 1967 | 1.1% | +8.2% |
| 1968 | 1.0% | -8.5% |
| 1969 | 1.1% | +8.9% |
| 1970 | 1.1% | +6.9% |
| 1971 | 1.5% | +30.5% |
| 1972 | 1.4% | -5.1% |
| 1973 | 1.5% | +7.9% |
| 1974 | 1.8% | +18.5% |
| 1975 | 1.6% | -12.4% |
| 1976 | 1.4% | -8.9% |
| 1977 | 1.5% | +6.8% |
| 1978 | 1.7% | +10.0% |
| 1979 | 2.0% | +19.3% |
| 1980 | 2.6% | +28.0% |
| 1981 | 3.0% | +17.6% |
| 1982 | 3.2% | +6.5% |
| 1983 | 2.2% | -33.5% |
| 1984 | 1.7% | -19.7% |
| 1985 | 1.6% | -7.7% |
| 1986 | 1.6% | -0.5% |
| 1987 | 1.4% | -13.1% |
| 1988 | 1.4% | +4.7% |
| 1989 | 1.5% | +2.1% |
| 1990 | 1.5% | +0.9% |
| 1991 | 1.4% | -4.4% |
| 1992 | 1.5% | +8.5% |
| 1993 | 1.6% | +1.8% |
| 1994 | 1.8% | +12.3% |
| 1995 | 1.8% | +1.8% |
| 1996 | 1.7% | -4.6% |
| 1997 | 1.8% | +2.1% |
| 1998 | 1.7% | -5.2% |
| 1999 | 1.6% | -2.4% |
| 2000 | 1.7% | +3.7% |
| 2001 | 1.5% | -11.5% |
| 2002 | 1.0% | -32.4% |
| 2003 | 0.8% | -22.9% |
| 2004 | 0.9% | +16.3% |
| 2005 | 0.9% | +5.4% |
| 2006 | 1.0% | +0.9% |
| 2007 | 1.0% | +6.1% |
| 2008 | 1.0% | -5.8% |
| 2009 | 1.0% | +9.1% |
| 2010 | 1.1% | +7.5% |
| 2011 | 1.2% | +6.4% |
| 2012 | 1.2% | -2.3% |
| 2013 | 1.1% | -2.8% |
| 2014 | 1.1% | -2.4% |
| 2015 | 1.2% | +8.7% |
| 2016 | 1.2% | +1.3% |
| 2017 | 1.4% | +10.9% |
| 2018 | 1.4% | +4.1% |
| 2019 | 1.5% | +5.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 2.2% | 2.0% | 2.3% | 8 |
| 1890s | 1.4% | 1.1% | 2.2% | 10 |
| 1900s | 1.1% | 0.9% | 1.3% | 10 |
| 1910s | 1.3% | 0.3% | 1.7% | 10 |
| 1920s | 1.0% | 0.9% | 1.1% | 10 |
| 1930s | 0.8% | 0.8% | 0.9% | 10 |
| 1940s | 1.2% | 0.9% | 1.4% | 10 |
| 1950s | 1.3% | 1.1% | 1.4% | 10 |
| 1960s | 1.0% | 0.7% | 1.2% | 10 |
| 1970s | 1.6% | 1.1% | 2.0% | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.0% | 1.4% | 3.2% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.6% | 1.4% | 1.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.1% | 0.8% | 1.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.2% | 1.1% | 1.5% | 10 |
Countries ranked near Uruguay
More economy & growth data for Uruguay
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 2.2 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 2.2 Percent per annum (2029)
- Services, value added (current US$), annual growth rate 3.85 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.6517 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (current US$), per capita 16,433 current US$ per person (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), annual growth rate 6.37 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), per unit of GDP 26.84 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Services, value added (current LCU), per capita 676,883 current LCU per person (2025)
- Services, value added (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 1.2 % change on previous year (2025)
- Services, value added (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.4596 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military spending as a share of gdp in Uruguay?
- Military spending as a share of gdp in Uruguay was 1.5% 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 Uruguay?
- The highest recorded value was 3.2% in 1982.
- What is the lowest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Uruguay?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.3% in 1912.
- How does Uruguay rank for military spending as a share of gdp?
- Uruguay ranks 77th out of 172 countries with data for 2019.
- Is military spending as a share of gdp rising or falling in Uruguay?
- Over the last ten years it is up 41.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is flat.
- Where does this Uruguay 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
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About this data
Military spending measured as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP).