Military profile
Netherlands Military Strength
Netherlands ranks #39 of 145 in the Global Firepower military strength ranking, with 35,000 active personnel. It spent $28.9 billion on its military in 2025 (2.2% of GDP).
Netherlands armed forces in numbers
Personnel
- Active military personnel
- 35,000#76 of 145
- Reserve military personnel
- 5,000#77 of 145
- Paramilitary forces
- 5,000#88 of 145
- Army personnel
- 24,000#91 of 145
- Air force personnel
- 6,550#64 of 145
- Navy personnel
- 7,500#51 of 145
Air power
- Total military aircraft
- 136#62 of 145
- Fighter aircraft
- 29#53 of 145
- Attack aircraft
- 18#35 of 145
- Military helicopters
- 64#51 of 145
- Attack helicopters
- 24#29 of 145
Land forces
- Tanks
- 18#107 of 145
- Self-propelled artillery
- 49#55 of 145
- Towed artillery
- 23#92 of 145
- Rocket artillery
- 0#98 of 145
Naval power
- Aircraft carriers
- 0#8 of 113
- Destroyers
- 0#15 of 113
- Frigates
- 6#27 of 113
- Corvettes
- 0#47 of 113
- Submarines
- 4#26 of 113
- Patrol vessels
- 4#93 of 113
- Mine warfare vessels
- 6#22 of 113
Finance
- Military spending
- $28.9 billion#19 of 156
- Military spending as % of GDP
- 2.2%#52 of 156
- Purchasing power parity (GDP, PPP)
- $945.5 billion#26 of 145
Equipment and personnel: Global Firepower 2023 military strength ranking (2023). Spending: World Bank / SIPRI military expenditure data (CC BY 4.0).
Netherlands military spending 2010–2025
Military spending of Netherlands grew by 158% between 2010 and 2025, from $11.2 billion to $28.9 billion (current US dollars), and stood at 2.2% of GDP in 2025.
Armed forces of Netherlands
Branches and forces
Netherlands (Dutch) Armed Forces (Nederlandse Krijgsmacht): Royal Netherlands Army, Royal Netherlands Navy (includes Marine Corps), Royal Netherlands Air Force, Royal Netherlands Marechaussee (Military Constabulary) (2025)
Personnel
approximately 43,000 active-duty professional military personnel (2025)
Service age and conscription
17 years of age for voluntary service for men and women; the military is an all-volunteer force; conscription remains in place, but the requirement to show up for compulsory military service was suspended in 1997 (2025)
Equipment and suppliers
the military's inventory consists of a mix of domestically produced and modern European- and US-sourced equipment; the Netherlands has an advanced domestic defense industry that focuses on armored vehicles, naval ships, and air defense systems; it also participates with the US and other European countries on joint development and production of advanced weapons systems (2025)
Deployments abroad
350 Lithuania (NATO); 150 Romania (NATO); approximately 800 deployed to Dutch territories in the Caribbean (2025)
Good to know
the Dutch military is charged with the three core tasks of defending the country’s national territory and that of its allies, enforcing the national and international rule of law, and providing assistance during disasters and other crises; it also has some domestic security duties, including in the Dutch Caribbean territories; the military operates globally but rarely carries out its operations independently, focusing instead on working through NATO and bilaterally with regional partners; it has particularly close ties with Belgium, Denmark, Germany, and the UK, including some combined military units and staffs the Netherlands has been a member of NATO since its founding in 1949, and the Dutch military is involved in NATO missions and operations with air, ground, and naval forces, including air policing missions over the Benelux countries and Eastern Europe, NATO’s Enhanced Forward Presence initiative in the Baltic States and Eastern Europe, and several NATO naval flotillas, as well as standby units for NATO’s rapid response force; the military has previously deployed forces to NATO-led operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Kosovo and also contributes to EU- and UN-led missions; Royal Netherlands Marechaussee detachments have been included in international police units deployed by NATO (2025)
Military expenditure (% of GDP)
2025: 2.5% · 2024: 2% · 2023: 1.6% · 2022: 1.4% · 2021: 1.3%
Forces and service: CIA World Factbook (public domain).
Germany
Belgium