Military spending as a share of GDP in Portugal
Portugal: Military spending as a share of GDP was 1.7% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Latest (2025)
1.7%
Change on year
up 18.5%
World rank
88th
of 166 countries
All-time high
4.5%
in 1968
All-time low
1.2%
in 2023
Years of data
74
1950–2025
Military spending as a share of GDP in Portugal, 1950–2025
Source: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
In 2025, military spending as a share of gdp in Portugal stood at 1.7%.
That represents a change of up 18.5% on the previous year and up 8.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military spending as a share of gdp in Portugal peaked at 4.5% in 1968 and was at its lowest, 1.2%, in 2023.
That places Portugal 88th out of 166 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.
Military spending as a share of GDP in Portugal, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 2.3% | — |
| 1953 | 2.5% | +6.2% |
| 1954 | 2.6% | +3.5% |
| 1955 | 2.6% | +1.1% |
| 1956 | 2.5% | -4.7% |
| 1957 | 2.5% | -0.6% |
| 1958 | 2.4% | -1.0% |
| 1959 | 2.6% | +6.4% |
| 1960 | 2.6% | -1.6% |
| 1961 | 3.9% | +52.1% |
| 1962 | 4.2% | +8.7% |
| 1963 | 4.0% | -6.4% |
| 1964 | 4.1% | +3.9% |
| 1965 | 3.8% | -7.2% |
| 1966 | 3.9% | +1.0% |
| 1967 | 4.5% | +15.9% |
| 1968 | 4.5% | +0.9% |
| 1969 | 4.1% | -8.1% |
| 1970 | 4.1% | -0.0% |
| 1971 | 4.3% | +4.7% |
| 1972 | 4.1% | -6.2% |
| 1973 | 3.5% | -14.3% |
| 1974 | 4.3% | +24.8% |
| 1975 | 3.1% | -28.7% |
| 1976 | 2.4% | -23.8% |
| 1977 | 2.1% | -12.2% |
| 1978 | 2.1% | +1.1% |
| 1979 | 2.0% | -3.1% |
| 1980 | 2.0% | -0.1% |
| 1981 | 2.0% | -1.2% |
| 1982 | 2.0% | +1.6% |
| 1983 | 1.9% | -6.2% |
| 1984 | 1.9% | -2.5% |
| 1985 | 1.8% | -1.0% |
| 1986 | 1.9% | +3.9% |
| 1987 | 1.9% | -3.0% |
| 1988 | 1.9% | +1.4% |
| 1989 | 1.9% | +0.1% |
| 1990 | 1.8% | -2.5% |
| 1991 | 1.8% | -0.6% |
| 1992 | 1.8% | -1.4% |
| 1993 | 1.8% | -1.0% |
| 1994 | 1.7% | -5.9% |
| 1995 | 1.7% | +1.5% |
| 1996 | 1.6% | -6.2% |
| 1997 | 1.5% | -3.8% |
| 1998 | 1.4% | -7.7% |
| 1999 | 1.4% | +0.2% |
| 2000 | 1.4% | -1.3% |
| 2001 | 1.4% | +2.7% |
| 2002 | 1.5% | +1.4% |
| 2003 | 1.4% | -2.1% |
| 2004 | 1.5% | +5.1% |
| 2005 | 1.6% | +5.8% |
| 2006 | 1.5% | -5.1% |
| 2007 | 1.4% | -8.9% |
| 2008 | 1.4% | +2.8% |
| 2009 | 1.5% | +9.3% |
| 2010 | 1.6% | +3.2% |
| 2011 | 1.6% | -1.9% |
| 2012 | 1.8% | +16.2% |
| 2013 | 1.7% | -7.8% |
| 2014 | 1.5% | -11.0% |
| 2015 | 1.6% | +5.3% |
| 2016 | 1.6% | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 1.5% | -7.0% |
| 2018 | 1.4% | -4.8% |
| 2019 | 1.4% | -1.0% |
| 2020 | 1.4% | +4.5% |
| 2021 | 1.5% | +5.5% |
| 2022 | 1.4% | -10.4% |
| 2023 | 1.2% | -11.0% |
| 2024 | 1.4% | +19.5% |
| 2025 | 1.7% | +18.5% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 2.5% | 2.3% | 2.6% | 8 |
| 1960s | 4.0% | 2.6% | 4.5% | 10 |
| 1970s | 3.2% | 2.0% | 4.3% | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.9% | 1.8% | 2.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.7% | 1.4% | 1.8% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.5% | 1.4% | 1.6% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.6% | 1.4% | 1.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 1.4% | 1.2% | 1.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Portugal
More economy & growth data for Portugal
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 2.18 Percent per annum (2029)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 1.9 Percent per annum (2029)
- Exports of goods and services (current LCU), annual growth rate 0.8661 % change on previous year (2025)
- Exports of goods and services (current LCU), per unit of GDP 0.3864 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Exports of goods and services (current LCU), per capita 12,395 current LCU per person (2025)
- Exports of goods and services (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate 0.4145 % change on previous year (2025)
- Exports of goods and services (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.3334 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Exports of goods and services (constant 2015 US$), per capita 10,695 constant 2015 US$ per person (2025)
- Gross fixed capital formation (current US$), annual growth rate 11.96 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross fixed capital formation (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2069 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military spending as a share of gdp in Portugal?
- Military spending as a share of gdp in Portugal was 1.7% in 2025, according to Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Portugal?
- The highest recorded value was 4.5% in 1968.
- What is the lowest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Portugal?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.2% in 2023.
- How does Portugal rank for military spending as a share of gdp?
- Portugal ranks 88th out of 166 countries with data for 2025.
- Is military spending as a share of gdp rising or falling in Portugal?
- Over the last ten years it is up 8.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Portugal data come from?
- The figures come from Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (2026) – 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
Total military expenditure divided by gross domestic product, expressed as a percentage.