Military profile
Algeria Military Strength
Algeria ranks #26 of 145 in the Global Firepower military strength ranking, with 130,000 active personnel. It spent $25.4 billion on its military in 2025 (8.8% of GDP).
Algeria armed forces in numbers
Personnel
- Active military personnel
- 130,000#37 of 145
- Reserve military personnel
- 135,000#30 of 145
- Paramilitary forces
- 200,000#12 of 145
- Army personnel
- 255,000#12 of 145
- Air force personnel
- 14,000#47 of 145
- Navy personnel
- 30,000#23 of 145
Air power
- Total military aircraft
- 547#21 of 145
- Fighter aircraft
- 90#25 of 145
- Attack aircraft
- 22#30 of 145
- Military helicopters
- 273#13 of 145
- Attack helicopters
- 50#13 of 145
Land forces
- Tanks
- 1,700#17 of 145
- Self-propelled artillery
- 224#26 of 145
- Towed artillery
- 483#22 of 145
- Rocket artillery
- 298#20 of 145
Naval power
- Aircraft carriers
- 0#8 of 113
- Destroyers
- 0#15 of 113
- Frigates
- 5#32 of 113
- Corvettes
- 6#16 of 113
- Submarines
- 6#17 of 113
- Patrol vessels
- 25#40 of 113
- Mine warfare vessels
- 0#53 of 113
Finance
- Military spending
- $25.4 billion#20 of 156
- Military spending as % of GDP
- 8.8%#2 of 156
- Purchasing power parity (GDP, PPP)
- $470.0 billion#42 of 145
Equipment and personnel: Global Firepower 2023 military strength ranking (2023). Spending: World Bank / SIPRI military expenditure data (CC BY 4.0).
Algeria military spending 2010–2025
Military spending of Algeria grew by 349% between 2010 and 2025, from $5.7 billion to $25.4 billion (current US dollars), and stood at 8.8% of GDP in 2025.
Armed forces of Algeria
Branches and forces
Algerian People's National Army (ANP): Land Forces, Naval Forces (includes Coast Guard), Air Forces, Territorial Air Defense Forces, Republican Guard, National Gendarmerie Ministry of Interior: General Directorate of National Security (national police) (2025)
Personnel
information varies; estimated 200,000 active ANP, including the National Gendarmerie (2025)
Service age and conscription
18 years of age for voluntary military service for men and women; 19 years of age for mandatory national service for men (all Algerian men must register at age 17); 12 months national service obligation (2025)
Equipment and suppliers
the Algerian military has traditionally been armed mostly with Russian and Soviet-era weapons systems and equipment; over the past decade, it has made investments in acquiring more modern armored vehicles, air defense systems, fighter aircraft, missiles, unmanned aerial vehicles, and warships, largely from Russia, its traditional supplier, but also China and Western European suppliers such as Germany (2025)
Good to know
the ANP is responsible for external defense but also has some internal security responsibilities; key areas of concern include border and maritime security, terrorism, regional instability, and tensions with Morocco; Algeria supports the pro-independence Polisario Front in Western Sahara and accuses Morocco of supporting the Algerian separatist Movement for the Autonomy of Kabylie (MAK); border security and counterterrorism have received additional focus since the Arab Spring events of 2011 and the rise of terrorist threats emanating from Libya and the Sahel; the Army and Ministry of Defense (MND) paramilitary forces of the Gendarmerie and the border guards have beefed up their presence along the frontiers with Tunisia, Libya, Niger, and Mali to interdict and deter cross-border attacks by Islamist militant groups; the ANP and MND paramilitary forces have also increased counterterrorism cooperation with some neighboring countries, particularly Tunisia, including joint operations the ANP has also played a large role in the country’s politics since independence in 1962, including coups in 1965 and 1991; it was a key backer of BOUTEFLIKA’s election in 1999 and remained a center of power during his 20-year rule; the military was instrumental in BOUTEFLIKA’s resignation in 2019, when it withdrew support and called for him to be removed from office (2024)
Military expenditure (% of GDP)
2024: 8% · 2023: 8% · 2022: 4.8% · 2021: 5.6% · 2020: 6.7%
Forces and service: CIA World Factbook (public domain).
Morocco
Mali
Tunisia
Libya
Niger
Mauritania