The world’s militaries spent $2.88 trillion in 2025, an increase of 2.9 percent from the year before, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute’s (SIPRI) latest report.To put that number into perspective, $2.88 trillion amounts to $350 of military spending for each person on the planet.In this visual explainer, Al Jazeera unpacks the rise of global militarisation, including how much each nation spends, which countries sell the most weapons, and how military spending compares with spending on healthcare and education.The US again tops the list in military spendingIn 2025, the five biggest military spenders were the United States ($954bn), China ($336bn), Russia ($190bn), Germany ($114bn) and India ($92bn), accounting for more than half (58 percent) of world military spending.The US is by far the biggest spender, as it has been every year since World War II. The $954bn spent by the US is more than the next six countries combined. (Al Jazeera)Since 1949, the US has spent at least $53.5 trillion on its military, accounting for more than half (51.5 percent) of the global total of more than $100 trillion.Military spending has generally followed the predictable pattern of rising during wartime and falling during more peaceful periods.The chart below shows the total global military spending over the past 75 years. (Al Jazeera)Post-World War II, global military spending surged rapidly in the early 1950s, jumping from $284bn in 1950 to $788bn by 1953, largely reflecting the impact of the Korean War. T …
