Military profile
Bahrain Military Strength
Bahrain ranks #79 of 145 in the Global Firepower military strength ranking, with 20,000 active personnel. It spent $1.5 billion on its military in 2025 (3.1% of GDP).
Bahrain armed forces in numbers
Personnel
- Active military personnel
- 20,000#100 of 145
- Reserve military personnel
- 110,000#34 of 145
- Paramilitary forces
- 3,000#98 of 145
- Army personnel
- 130,000#31 of 145
- Air force personnel
- 1,500#104 of 145
- Navy personnel
- 750#93 of 145
Air power
- Total military aircraft
- 116#67 of 145
- Fighter aircraft
- 17#63 of 145
- Attack aircraft
- 0#65 of 145
- Military helicopters
- 59#60 of 145
- Attack helicopters
- 28#26 of 145
Land forces
- Tanks
- 180#66 of 145
- Self-propelled artillery
- 38#64 of 145
- Towed artillery
- 32#89 of 145
- Rocket artillery
- 20#75 of 145
Naval power
- Aircraft carriers
- 0#8 of 113
- Destroyers
- 0#15 of 113
- Frigates
- 1#49 of 113
- Corvettes
- 2#32 of 113
- Submarines
- 0#44 of 113
- Patrol vessels
- 44#21 of 113
- Mine warfare vessels
- 0#53 of 113
Finance
- Military spending
- $1.5 billion#75 of 156
- Military spending as % of GDP
- 3.1%#29 of 156
- Purchasing power parity (GDP, PPP)
- $70.0 billion#96 of 145
Equipment and personnel: Global Firepower 2023 military strength ranking (2023). Spending: World Bank / SIPRI military expenditure data (CC BY 4.0).
Bahrain military spending 2010–2025
Military spending of Bahrain grew by 74% between 2010 and 2025, from $843 million to $1.5 billion (current US dollars), and stood at 3.1% of GDP in 2025.
Armed forces of Bahrain
Branches and forces
Bahrain Defense Force (BDF): Royal Bahraini Army (includes the Royal Guard), Royal Bahraini Navy, Royal Bahraini Air Force Ministry of Interior: National Guard, Special Security Forces Command (SSFC), Coast Guard (2025)
Personnel
information varies; approximately 10,000 active Bahrain Defense Force; approximately 3,000 National Guard (2025)
Service age and conscription
18 years of age for voluntary military service; 18-55 to voluntarily join the reserves (2025)
Equipment and suppliers
the military's inventory is comprised of mostly older US armaments alongside smaller quantities from other countries, such as France, Germany, Turkey, and the UK (2025)
Good to know
the BDF (established 1968) is responsible for territorial defense and support to internal security; its primary concern is Iran, both the conventional military threat and Tehran's support to regional terrorist groups; the BDF participates in multinational exercises and has conducted small deployments outside of the country; in 2015, for example, Bahrain joined the Saudi Arabia-led military intervention in Yemen, supplying a few hundred troops and combat aircraft Bahrain’s closest security partners are Saudi Arabia and the US; Bahraini leaders have said that the security ties of Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are “indivisible”; Saudi Arabia sent forces to Bahrain to assist with internal security following the 2011 uprising; Bahrain hosts the US Naval Forces Central Command (USNAVCENT; established 1983), which includes the US 5th Fleet and the Combined Maritime Forces (established 2002), a coalition of more than 30 nations providing maritime security for regional shipping lanes; Bahrain also has close security ties with the UK, which maintains a naval support facility there Bahrain hosts the Gulf Cooperation Council's (GCC) Unified Maritime Operations Center and is a member of the Peninsula Shield Forces, a joint military force established by the GCC countries with the aim of maintaining security and stability in the region (2025)
Military expenditure (% of GDP)
2024: 3% · 2023: 3.2% · 2022: 3.2% · 2021: 3.6% · 2020: 4.2%
Forces and service: CIA World Factbook (public domain).