Key Takeaways
- Global defense industry employed 3.5 million people directly in 2023.
- US defense sector supported 2.9 million jobs in 2023.
- Global arms exports totaled $238 billion in 2018-2022 period, averaging $47.6 billion annually.
- Defense spending by the United States reached $916 billion in 2023, accounting for 37% of global total.
- China’s military expenditure grew by 6.0% to $296 billion in 2023.
- Russia increased defense spending by 24% to $109 billion in 2023.
- Lockheed Martin reported $67.6 billion in defense revenue for 2023.
- RTX (Raytheon) generated $68.9 billion in net sales in 2023, with defense segment at $40.6 billion.
- Northrop Grumman’s 2023 sales reached $39.3 billion, primarily defense.
- The global defense market size reached USD 598.4 billion in 2023 and is expected to grow to USD 791.7 billion by 2028 at a CAGR of 5.75%.
- Global military expenditure totaled $2,443 billion in 2023, marking a 6.8% increase from 2022.
- The aerospace and defense sector generated $837 billion in revenue worldwide in 2023.
- Global R&D spending in defense reached $108 billion in 2023.
- US DoD R&D budget for FY2024 is $145 billion.
- Hypersonic weapons market projected to grow from $5.1 billion in 2023 to $12.2 billion by 2030.
Related reading
01 · Category
Employment And Exports19 stats
01
Global defense industry employed 3.5 million people directly in 2023.
02
US defense sector supported 2.9 million jobs in 2023.
03
Global arms exports totaled $238 billion in 2018-2022 period, averaging $47.6 billion annually.
04
US arms exports accounted for 40% of global total in 2018-2022.
05
France was second largest arms exporter with 11% share 2018-2022.
06
Russia’s arms exports fell 53% in 2018-2022 compared to prior period.
07
China exported arms worth $11 billion in 2018-2022, 5.8% share.
08
Germany’s arms exports reached $9.9 billion in 2018-2022.
09
Top 100 arms companies’ total sales $592 billion in 2022.
10
Defense industry generated $150 billion in exports for US in 2023.
11
Europe’s defense employment totals 1.2 million workers.
12
India’s defense exports hit $2.6 billion in FY2023-24.
13
Global defense supply chain employs over 10 million indirectly.
14
UK defense sector employs 145,000 directly and supports 250,000 more.
15
Australia’s defense industry workforce is 95,000 strong in 2023.
16
Brazil defense exports reached $1.8 billion in 2023.
17
South Africa’s arms exports totaled $0.6 billion in 2022.
18
Turkey’s defense exports surged to $5.5 billion in 2023.
19
Canada defense industry employs 65,000 people.
Interpretation
Employment And Exports Interpretation
In the employment and exports view of the defense industry, global employment reached 3.5 million direct jobs in 2023 while arms trade was dominated by the United States at about 40% of the $238 billion global total from 2018 to 2022, with Russia’s exports shrinking 53% over the same period.
02 · Category
Government Spending24 stats
01
Defense spending by the United States reached $916 billion in 2023, accounting for 37% of global total.
02
China’s military expenditure grew by 6.0% to $296 billion in 2023.
03
Russia increased defense spending by 24% to $109 billion in 2023.
04
India’s military budget rose 4.2% to $83.6 billion in 2023.
05
Saudi Arabia spent $75.8 billion on defense in 2023, up 4.7%.
06
UK defense spending totaled $74.9 billion in 2023, a 5.9% increase.
07
Germany’s military expenditure surged 11% to $66.8 billion in 2023.
08
France spent $61.3 billion on defense in 2023, up 5.2%.
09
Japan’s defense budget reached $50.2 billion in 2023, a 11% increase.
10
South Korea allocated $46.3 billion to defense in 2023, up 3.9%.
11
Australia’s military spending was $32.3 billion in 2023, rising 5.6%.
12
UAE defense expenditure stood at $22 billion in 2023.
13
Israel spent $27.5 billion on defense in 2023, a 24% increase.
14
Brazil’s military budget was $21.8 billion in 2023, up 2.5%.
15
Italy allocated $32.5 billion to defense in 2023.
16
Canada spent $26.9 billion on military in 2023, a 24% rise.
17
Poland’s defense spending jumped 75% to $31.6 billion in 2023.
18
Turkey expended $15.8 billion on defense in 2023.
19
NATO members’ total defense spending reached $1.34 trillion in 2023.
20
Europe’s military expenditure totaled $457 billion in 2023, up 16%.
21
Middle East defense spending was $243 billion in 2023.
22
Asia and Oceania region spent $629 billion on defense in 2023.
23
Africa’s military expenditure reached $52 billion in 2023, a 22% increase.
24
The Americas accounted for 42% of global military spending in 2023.
03 · Category
Major Companies20 stats
01
Lockheed Martin reported $67.6 billion in defense revenue for 2023.
02
RTX (Raytheon) generated $68.9 billion in net sales in 2023, with defense segment at $40.6 billion.
03
Northrop Grumman’s 2023 sales reached $39.3 billion, primarily defense.
04
Boeing Defense, Space & Security segment revenue was $25.0 billion in 2023.
05
General Dynamics achieved $42.3 billion in 2023 revenue.
06
BAE Systems reported £25.3 billion ($32.1 billion) in sales for 2023.
07
L3Harris Technologies had $19.4 billion in 2023 revenue.
08
Leonardo S.p.A. generated €15.3 billion ($16.7 billion) in 2023 orders.
09
Thales Group’s 2023 sales reached €18.4 billion.
10
Saab AB reported SEK 52.5 billion ($5.0 billion) in 2023 net sales.
11
Huntington Ingalls Industries revenue was $11.6 billion in 2023.
12
Textron’s defense segment contributed $4.8 billion to 2023 revenue.
13
Elbit Systems reported $6.5 billion in 2023 revenues.
14
Dassault Aviation’s order intake was €28.1 billion in 2023.
15
Rheinmetall AG achieved €7.2 billion in 2023 sales.
16
Airbus Defence and Space generated €11.8 billion in 2023 revenue.
17
Rolls-Royce Defence sales were £6.7 billion in 2023.
18
Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) had $5.6 billion in 2023 sales.
19
Kongsberg Gruppen ASA revenue reached NOK 42.7 billion in 2023.
20
Lockheed Martin delivered 158 F-35 aircraft in 2023.
More related reading
04 · Category
Market Size And Growth25 stats
01
The global defense market size reached USD 598.4 billion in 2023 and is expected to grow to USD 791.7 billion by 2028 at a CAGR of 5.75%.
02
Global military expenditure totaled $2,443 billion in 2023, marking a 6.8% increase from 2022.
03
The aerospace and defense sector generated $837 billion in revenue worldwide in 2023.
04
Defense spending as a share of global GDP stood at 2.2% in 2023.
05
The global military aircraft market is projected to grow from $115.5 billion in 2024 to $162.8 billion by 2032 at a CAGR of 4.4%.
06
Worldwide defense IT spending reached $142 billion in 2023.
07
The naval vessels market size was valued at $50.2 billion in 2023 and expected to reach $72.4 billion by 2032.
08
Global missile defense systems market was USD 12.5 billion in 2023, projected to hit USD 22.1 billion by 2032.
09
Defense electronics market size stood at USD 213.5 billion in 2023, growing to USD 331.2 billion by 2032 at 5% CAGR.
10
The global land vehicles defense market is estimated at $32.5 billion in 2024, reaching $45.2 billion by 2030.
11
C4ISR systems market valued at $115.2 billion in 2023, projected to $162.4 billion by 2030.
12
Global military robots market size was $16.3 billion in 2023, expected to grow to $31.2 billion by 2030 at 9.8% CAGR.
13
Defense cyber security market reached $22.1 billion in 2023, forecasted to $47.9 billion by 2030.
14
The soldier systems market size was valued at $12.4 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow to $22.8 billion by 2032.
15
Global ammunition market size stood at $23.6 billion in 2023, expected to reach $32.1 billion by 2030.
16
Military communication market valued at $44.2 billion in 2023, projected to $72.5 billion by 2030 at 7.4% CAGR.
17
The global military radar market size was USD 15.6 billion in 2023 and is expected to reach USD 23.4 billion by 2031.
18
Defense simulation and training market size was $12.8 billion in 2023, projected to $24.5 billion by 2032.
19
Global armored vehicles market revenue was $32.7 billion in 2023, expected to grow to $45.9 billion by 2030.
20
Military drones market size estimated at $13.9 billion in 2023, reaching $47.1 billion by 2032 at 14.5% CAGR.
21
The global military submarine market size was valued at $35.2 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow to $52.8 billion by 2032.
22
Defense logistics market size stood at $248.4 billion in 2023, forecasted to $365.2 billion by 2030.
23
Global CBRN defense market was $12.1 billion in 2023, expected to reach $18.9 billion by 2030.
24
Military wearable market size valued at $4.2 billion in 2023, projected to $12.5 billion by 2032.
25
The global directed energy weapons market size was USD 3.2 billion in 2023, growing to USD 12.4 billion by 2032.
Interpretation
Market Size And Growth Interpretation
The global defense market is expanding steadily from USD 598.4 billion in 2023 to USD 791.7 billion by 2028 at a 5.75% CAGR, underscoring strong and continuing Market Size And Growth momentum alongside rising military spending of $2,443 billion in 2023.
05 · Category
R&d And Technology17 stats
01
Global R&D spending in defense reached $108 billion in 2023.
02
US DoD R&D budget for FY2024 is $145 billion.
03
Hypersonic weapons market projected to grow from $5.1 billion in 2023 to $12.2 billion by 2030.
04
AI in defense market size was $9.2 billion in 2023, expected to reach $38.8 billion by 2030.
05
Directed energy weapons R&D investments topped $2.5 billion globally in 2023.
06
Quantum technology in defense market valued at $0.8 billion in 2023, projected to $4.5 billion by 2030.
07
Global investment in military space systems reached $60 billion in 2023.
08
Cyber defense R&D spending by top nations exceeded $25 billion in 2023.
09
Unmanned underwater vehicles (UUV) R&D market at $2.1 billion in 2023.
10
Additive manufacturing in defense valued at $1.4 billion in 2023 for R&D.
11
Stealth technology development costs averaged $10 billion per program globally.
12
Big data analytics in military R&D market size $3.5 billion in 2023.
13
Blockchain for defense supply chain R&D at $0.5 billion in 2023.
14
Electronic warfare systems R&D investments hit $8.2 billion in 2023.
15
Autonomous systems R&D funding reached $15.4 billion worldwide in 2023.
16
5G military applications R&D market $1.2 billion in 2023.
17
Biometric identification tech in defense R&D valued at $0.9 billion.
Interpretation
R&d And Technology Interpretation
Defense R&D is accelerating rapidly, with global spending hitting $108 billion in 2023 and key technology areas like AI growing from $9.2 billion in 2023 to $38.8 billion by 2030, showing how quickly investment is shifting within the R&D and Technology category.
report visual · Comparison
Global Defense Industry Statistics statistics snapshot
Selected headline statistics from verified sources for a stable visual baseline.
Global arms exports totaled $238 billion in 2018-2022 period, averaging $47.6 billion annually.$238 billion
Russia’s arms exports fell 53% in 2018-2022 compared to prior period.53%
US arms exports accounted for 40% of global total in 2018-2022.40%
France was second largest arms exporter with 11% share 2018-2022.11%
Global defense industry employed 3.5 million people directly in 2023.3.5
US defense sector supported 2.9 million jobs in 2023.2.9
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
David Sutherland. (2026, February 13). Global Defense Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/global-defense-industry-statistics
MLA
David Sutherland. "Global Defense Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/global-defense-industry-statistics.
Chicago
David Sutherland. 2026. "Global Defense Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/global-defense-industry-statistics.
Sources & references
51 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level