Military spending as a share of GDP in Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of
Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of: Military spending as a share of GDP was 2.2% in 2017. ▼ Falling
Military spending as a share of GDP in Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of, 1955–2017
Source: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (2026) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in % of GDP.
Analysis
Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of recorded 2.2% for military spending as a share of gdp in 2017.
The figure is up 391.9% on the previous year and up 18.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, military spending as a share of gdp in Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of peaked at 3.4% in 1958 and was at its lowest, 0.5%, in 2016.
Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of ranks 60th of 166 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 63 years of available data.
Military spending as a share of GDP in Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of, year by year
| Year | % of GDP | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1955 | 2.6% | — |
| 1956 | 2.8% | +6.9% |
| 1957 | 3.2% | +16.8% |
| 1958 | 3.4% | +6.7% |
| 1959 | 3.0% | -13.8% |
| 1960 | 3.1% | +3.4% |
| 1961 | 1.4% | -53.5% |
| 1962 | 2.3% | +62.6% |
| 1963 | 2.6% | +10.4% |
| 1964 | 2.4% | -4.2% |
| 1965 | 2.6% | +7.8% |
| 1966 | 2.7% | +0.8% |
| 1967 | 2.9% | +7.6% |
| 1968 | 2.7% | -6.3% |
| 1969 | 2.5% | -6.7% |
| 1970 | 2.3% | -8.2% |
| 1971 | 2.7% | +17.7% |
| 1972 | 2.8% | +4.8% |
| 1973 | 2.5% | -12.7% |
| 1974 | 2.3% | -6.6% |
| 1975 | 2.6% | +12.3% |
| 1976 | 1.9% | -27.2% |
| 1977 | 2.1% | +9.6% |
| 1978 | 2.1% | +1.8% |
| 1979 | 1.9% | -9.0% |
| 1980 | 1.7% | -11.5% |
| 1981 | 1.5% | -10.3% |
| 1982 | 2.2% | +47.8% |
| 1983 | 3.0% | +32.1% |
| 1984 | 2.3% | -22.8% |
| 1985 | 1.4% | -40.2% |
| 1986 | 1.6% | +20.5% |
| 1987 | 1.6% | -1.0% |
| 1988 | 1.8% | +11.2% |
| 1989 | 2.8% | +53.8% |
| 1990 | 1.5% | -45.7% |
| 1991 | 1.8% | +21.2% |
| 1992 | 1.6% | -10.7% |
| 1993 | 2.1% | +30.5% |
| 1994 | 1.6% | -25.8% |
| 1995 | 1.5% | -2.6% |
| 1996 | 1.0% | -32.9% |
| 1997 | 1.8% | +72.7% |
| 1998 | 1.6% | -11.5% |
| 1999 | 1.4% | -9.5% |
| 2000 | 1.5% | +6.2% |
| 2001 | 1.6% | +1.9% |
| 2002 | 1.2% | -25.8% |
| 2003 | 1.2% | +2.5% |
| 2004 | 1.3% | +8.9% |
| 2005 | 1.8% | +42.2% |
| 2006 | 2.0% | +8.0% |
| 2007 | 1.9% | -4.5% |
| 2008 | 1.8% | -5.1% |
| 2009 | 1.2% | -31.4% |
| 2010 | 1.0% | -17.7% |
| 2011 | 1.1% | +11.5% |
| 2012 | 1.3% | +18.7% |
| 2013 | 1.7% | +24.5% |
| 2014 | 1.2% | -30.4% |
| 2015 | 0.9% | -19.0% |
| 2016 | 0.5% | -51.8% |
| 2017 | 2.2% | +391.9% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 3.0% | 2.6% | 3.4% | 5 |
| 1960s | 2.5% | 1.4% | 3.1% | 10 |
| 1970s | 2.3% | 1.9% | 2.8% | 10 |
| 1980s | 2.0% | 1.4% | 3.0% | 10 |
| 1990s | 1.6% | 1.0% | 2.1% | 10 |
| 2000s | 1.5% | 1.2% | 2.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.2% | 0.5% | 2.2% | 8 |
Countries ranked near Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of
More economy & growth data for Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 04 - Annual real GDP 1.36 Percent per annum (2025)
- Africa's Development Dynamics (AfDD) Table 02 - Annual real GDP 3.19 Percent per annum (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current US$), annual growth rate 0.7182 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.0593 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current US$), per capita 207.15 current US$ per person (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current LCU), annual growth rate 304.81 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current LCU), per unit of GDP 9.81 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Gross capital formation (current LCU), per capita 34,274 current LCU per person (2025)
- Gross capital formation (constant 2015 US$), annual growth rate -3.39 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gross capital formation (constant 2015 US$), per unit of GDP 0.0284 constant 2015 US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is military spending as a share of gdp in Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of?
- Military spending as a share of gdp in Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of was 2.2% in 2017, 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 Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of?
- The highest recorded value was 3.4% in 1958.
- What is the lowest military spending as a share of gdp recorded in Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of?
- The lowest recorded value was 0.5% in 2016.
- How does Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of rank for military spending as a share of gdp?
- Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of ranks 60th out of 166 countries with data for 2017.
- Is military spending as a share of gdp rising or falling in Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of?
- Over the last ten years it is up 18.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of 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
CSV · JSON — 63 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Total military expenditure divided by gross domestic product, expressed as a percentage.