Military personnel as a share of total population in France

France: Military personnel as a share of total population was 0.3063 in 2022. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2022)
0.3063
Change on year
down 0.3%
World rank
77th
of 194 countries
All-time high
16.07
in 1918
All-time low
0.3063
in 2022
Years of data
205
1816–2022

Military personnel as a share of total population in France, 1816–2022

051015181619192022

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

In 2022, military personnel as a share of total population in France stood at 0.3063. That is the lowest value across all 205 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is down 0.3% on the previous year and down 18.1% over ten years.

Over the whole period, military personnel as a share of total population in France peaked at 16.07 in 1918 and was at its lowest, 0.3063, in 2022.

France ranks 77th of 194 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.

The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.

Military personnel as a share of total population in France, year by year

Annual values for Military personnel as a share of total population in France, 1816 to 2022.
Year Value Change
1816 0.4478 —
1817 0.4411 -1.5%
1818 0.4618 +4.7%
1819 0.6055 +31.1%
1820 0.6876 +13.6%
1821 0.6502 -5.4%
1822 0.7915 +21.7%
1823 0.8274 +4.5%
1824 0.7663 -7.4%
1825 0.7545 -1.5%
1826 0.75 -0.6%
1827 0.7453 -0.6%
1828 0.7719 +3.6%
1829 0.8209 +6.4%
1830 0.8001 -2.5%
1831 1.15 +43.1%
1832 0.9502 -17.0%
1833 0.9091 -4.3%
1834 0.8074 -11.2%
1835 0.8689 +7.6%
1836 0.8766 +0.9%
1837 0.9113 +4.0%
1838 0.8997 -1.3%
1839 0.8839 -1.8%
1840 1.31 +48.1%
1841 1.41 +7.8%
1842 1.27 -9.9%
1843 1.15 -9.9%
1844 1.03 -9.7%
1845 1.02 -1.8%
1846 1.1 +7.9%
1847 1.11 +1.3%
1848 1.09 -1.9%
1849 1.31 +20.1%
1850 1.23 -5.8%
1851 1.12 -8.9%
1852 1.1 -1.7%
1853 1.18 +6.4%
1854 1.21 +3.3%
1855 1.79 +47.2%
1856 1.78 -0.3%
1857 1.45 -18.4%
1858 1.18 -19.2%
1859 1.27 +8.4%
1860 1.67 +30.7%
1861 1.41 -15.2%
1862 1.39 -1.9%
1863 1.31 -5.7%
1864 1.29 -1.6%
1865 1.26 -2.1%
1866 1.2 -4.5%
1867 1.21 +0.3%
1868 1.26 +4.5%
1869 1.23 -2.0%
1870 1.18 -4.8%
1871 2.76 +135.0%
1872 1.34 -51.6%
1873 1.47 +10.0%
1874 1.3 -11.6%
1875 1.32 +1.8%
1876 1.36 +2.8%
1877 1.41 +3.9%
1878 1.46 +3.3%
1879 1.41 -3.7%
1880 1.45 +3.3%
1881 1.54 +5.9%
1882 1.56 +1.4%
1883 1.36 -12.5%
1884 1.38 +1.5%
1885 1.36 -1.6%
1886 1.4 +3.0%
1887 1.36 -3.2%
1888 1.49 +9.5%
1889 1.54 +3.3%
1890 1.55 +1.2%
1891 1.58 +1.6%
1892 1.58 +0.1%
1893 1.59 +0.6%
1894 1.54 -3.4%
1895 1.52 -0.8%
1896 1.59 +4.4%
1897 1.61 +1.2%
1898 1.68 +4.7%
1899 1.68 -0.2%
1900 1.59 -5.2%
1901 1.55 -3.0%
1902 1.56 +1.0%
1903 1.57 +0.5%
1904 1.52 -3.1%
1905 1.6 +5.0%
1906 1.62 +1.3%
1907 1.58 -2.5%
1908 1.57 -0.3%
1909 1.63 +3.4%
1910 1.65 +1.4%
1911 1.61 -2.3%
1912 1.62 +0.5%
1913 1.59 -1.8%
1914 2.38 +49.5%
1915 14.97 +530.3%
1916 16.01 +7.0%
1917 15.82 -1.2%
1918 16.07 +1.6%
1919 7.39 -54.0%
1920 3.74 -49.5%
1921 1.39 -62.7%
1922 1.38 -0.8%
1923 1.28 -7.3%
1924 1.19 -7.3%
1925 1.17 -1.6%
1926 1.15 -1.5%
1927 1.21 +4.7%
1928 1.14 -5.3%
1929 0.9968 -12.7%
1930 0.9877 -0.9%
1931 1.05 +6.7%
1932 1.01 -4.3%
1933 1.07 +6.3%
1934 1.09 +1.9%
1935 1.31 +19.7%
1936 1.4 +7.4%
1937 1.46 +4.2%
1938 1.38 -5.3%
1939 1.39 +0.1%
1940 12.2 +779.5%
1941 4.66 -61.8%
1944 1.49 -68.1%
1945 1.46 -2.2%
1946 1.43 -1.4%
1947 1.43 -0.5%
1948 1.41 -1.5%
1949 1.42 +1.0%
1950 1.43 +0.4%
1951 1.47 +3.4%
1952 1.55 +4.9%
1953 1.64 +6.0%
1954 1.73 +5.6%
1955 1.85 +6.7%
1956 1.95 +5.7%
1957 2.06 +5.5%
1958 2.15 +4.1%
1959 2.19 +2.2%
1960 2.24 +2.3%
1961 1.56 -30.5%
1962 1.5 -3.8%
1963 1.54 +2.5%
1964 1.43 -7.1%
1965 1.2 -16.0%
1966 1.18 -1.7%
1967 1.2 +1.8%
1968 1.14 -4.9%
1969 1.13 -0.8%
1970 1.12 -0.9%
1971 1.1 -1.8%
1972 1.08 -1.8%
1973 1.11 +2.9%
1974 1.11 -0.0%
1975 1.11 -0.4%
1976 1.11 -0.4%
1977 1.1 -0.6%
1978 1.09 -0.9%
1979 1.08 -0.9%
1980 1.07 -1.0%
1981 1.06 -0.6%
1982 1.06 -0.0%
1983 1.06 -0.5%
1984 1.04 -1.7%
1985 1.02 -1.9%
1986 1 -1.4%
1987 1 -0.3%
1988 0.9943 -0.7%
1989 0.989 -0.5%
1990 0.9765 -1.3%
1991 0.971 -0.6%
1992 0.9447 -2.7%
1993 0.8776 -7.1%
1994 0.8739 -0.4%
1995 0.8669 -0.8%
1996 0.8582 -1.0%
1997 0.8105 -5.6%
1998 0.7651 -5.6%
1999 0.7149 -6.6%
2000 0.4976 -30.4%
2001 0.4609 -7.4%
2002 0.433 -6.0%
2003 0.4279 -1.2%
2004 0.4213 -1.5%
2005 0.415 -1.5%
2006 0.4123 -0.6%
2007 0.4099 -0.6%
2008 0.4077 -0.5%
2009 0.5613 +37.7%
2010 0.5583 -0.5%
2011 0.3759 -32.7%
2012 0.3738 -0.6%
2013 0.3583 -4.2%
2014 0.3458 -3.5%
2015 0.3336 -3.6%
2016 0.3229 -3.2%
2017 0.3109 -3.7%
2018 0.3098 -0.4%
2019 0.3104 +0.2%
2020 0.3095 -0.3%
2021 0.3072 -0.8%
2022 0.3063 -0.3%

France compared with similar countries

  • France's 0.3063 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.3016, 1.0× the median. (64 countries reporting)
  • France's 0.3063 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.2903, 1.1× the median. (52 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Military personnel as a share of total population in France changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
1940 +779.5% 1.39 12.2
1915 +530.3% 2.38 14.97
1871 +135.0% 1.18 2.76
1944 -68.1% 4.66 1.49
1921 -62.7% 3.74 1.39
1941 -61.8% 12.2 4.66

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1810s 0.489 0.4411 0.6055 4
1820s 0.7566 0.6502 0.8274 10
1830s 0.9052 0.8001 1.15 10
1840s 1.18 1.02 1.41 10
1850s 1.33 1.1 1.79 10
1860s 1.32 1.2 1.67 10
1870s 1.5 1.18 2.76 10
1880s 1.44 1.36 1.56 10
1890s 1.59 1.52 1.68 10
1900s 1.58 1.52 1.63 10
1910s 7.91 1.59 16.07 10
1920s 1.47 0.9968 3.74 10
1930s 1.22 0.9877 1.46 10
1940s 3.19 1.41 12.2 8
1950s 1.8 1.43 2.19 10
1960s 1.41 1.13 2.24 10
1970s 1.1 1.08 1.12 10
1980s 1.03 0.989 1.07 10
1990s 0.8659 0.7149 0.9765 10
2000s 0.4447 0.4077 0.5613 10
2010s 0.36 0.3098 0.5583 10
2020s 0.3077 0.3063 0.3095 3

Countries ranked near France

  1. 74 Malaysia 0.3257 compare
  2. 75 Montenegro 0.3252 compare
  3. 76 Suriname 0.321 compare
  4. 78 Eswatini 0.3061 compare
  5. 79 Algeria 0.3056 compare
  6. 80 Angola 0.3003 compare

See the full ranking of 194 places →

More population data for France

All data for France →

Frequently asked questions

What is military personnel as a share of total population in France?
Military personnel as a share of total population in France was 0.3063 in 2022, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest military personnel as a share of total population recorded in France?
The highest recorded value was 16.07 in 1918.
What is the lowest military personnel as a share of total population recorded in France?
The lowest recorded value was 0.3063 in 2022.
How does France rank for military personnel as a share of total population?
France ranks 77th out of 194 countries with data for 2022.
Is military personnel as a share of total population rising or falling in France?
Over the last ten years it is down 18.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this France data come from?
The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Military personnel as a share of total population. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Military personnel as a share of total population in France. Statizoid, drawing on Our World in Data. Retrieved 12 November 2026, from https://population.statizoid.com/stat/military-personnel-as-a-share-of-total-population/france/

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About this data

Indicator
Military personnel as a share of total population
Source
Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
194 places, 15,765 data points, 1816–2022
Last refreshed