Military personnel as a share of total population in Norway

Norway: Military personnel as a share of total population was 0.4581 in 2022. ◆ Volatile

Latest (2022)
0.4581
Change on year
down 0.9%
World rank
44th
of 194 countries
All-time high
1.39
in 1905
All-time low
0.1301
in 1945
Years of data
114
1905–2022

Military personnel as a share of total population in Norway, 1905–2022

00.511.5190519632022

Source: Our World in Data.

Analysis

Norway recorded 0.4581 for military personnel as a share of total population in 2022.

That represents a change of down 0.9% on the previous year and down 4.7% over ten years.

Over the whole period, military personnel as a share of total population in Norway peaked at 1.39 in 1905 and was at its lowest, 0.1301, in 1945.

Norway ranks 44th of 194 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

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 Norway, year by year

Annual values for Military personnel as a share of total population in Norway, 1905 to 2022.
Year Value Change
1905 1.39 —
1906 0.3026 -78.2%
1907 0.3012 -0.5%
1908 0.3 -0.4%
1909 0.2969 -1.1%
1910 0.2104 -29.1%
1911 0.2092 -0.6%
1912 0.2074 -0.9%
1913 0.2053 -1.0%
1914 0.2034 -0.9%
1915 0.2011 -1.1%
1916 0.1993 -0.9%
1917 0.2761 +38.6%
1918 0.2729 -1.2%
1919 0.2704 -0.9%
1920 0.2676 -1.0%
1921 0.2639 -1.4%
1922 0.261 -1.1%
1923 0.2586 -0.9%
1924 0.2574 -0.4%
1925 0.2191 -14.9%
1926 0.2541 +15.9%
1927 0.2166 -14.7%
1928 0.216 -0.3%
1929 0.2151 -0.4%
1930 0.1429 -33.5%
1931 0.1776 +24.3%
1932 0.1766 -0.6%
1933 0.1754 -0.6%
1934 0.1396 -20.4%
1935 0.1388 -0.6%
1936 0.1381 -0.5%
1937 0.1375 -0.5%
1938 0.1367 -0.5%
1939 0.1359 -0.6%
1940 0.135 -0.6%
1945 0.1301 -3.6%
1946 1.06 +716.5%
1947 0.9536 -10.2%
1948 0.9372 -1.7%
1949 0.9276 -1.0%
1950 0.9188 -0.9%
1951 0.9102 -0.9%
1952 0.9315 +2.3%
1953 0.9223 -1.0%
1954 0.9428 +2.2%
1955 0.9629 +2.1%
1956 0.9827 +2.0%
1957 0.9737 -0.9%
1958 0.9935 +2.0%
1959 1.01 +2.0%
1960 1.03 +2.0%
1961 0.8864 -14.2%
1962 0.9343 +5.4%
1963 0.9545 +2.2%
1964 0.9475 -0.7%
1965 0.9401 -0.8%
1966 0.9326 -0.8%
1967 0.9247 -0.8%
1968 0.9165 -0.9%
1969 0.9089 -0.8%
1970 0.9028 -0.7%
1971 0.8967 -0.7%
1972 0.8899 -0.8%
1973 0.9846 +10.6%
1974 1 +1.9%
1975 0.9483 -5.5%
1976 0.9687 +2.1%
1977 0.9646 -0.4%
1978 0.9855 +2.2%
1979 0.9821 -0.3%
1980 0.979 -0.3%
1981 0.9512 -2.8%
1982 0.9721 +2.2%
1983 0.9932 +2.2%
1984 0.942 -5.2%
1985 0.8668 -8.0%
1986 0.9119 +5.2%
1987 0.9076 -0.5%
1988 0.9503 +4.7%
1989 1.02 +7.0%
1990 1.2 +18.2%
1991 0.962 -20.0%
1992 0.8399 -12.7%
1993 0.7421 -11.6%
1994 0.763 +2.8%
1995 0.8718 +14.3%
1996 0.8674 -0.5%
1997 0.749 -13.7%
1998 0.7468 -0.3%
1999 0.7429 -0.5%
2000 0.6047 -18.6%
2001 0.5981 -1.1%
2002 0.5951 -0.5%
2003 0.5921 -0.5%
2004 0.5667 -4.3%
2005 0.5623 -0.8%
2006 0.5569 -1.0%
2007 0.4872 -12.5%
2008 0.3349 -31.3%
2009 0.3929 +17.3%
2010 0.4907 +24.9%
2011 0.5259 +7.2%
2012 0.4806 -8.6%
2013 0.4727 -1.6%
2014 0.5058 +7.0%
2015 0.5 -1.2%
2016 0.4948 -1.0%
2017 0.4738 -4.2%
2018 0.4518 -4.6%
2019 0.4301 -4.8%
2020 0.4276 -0.6%
2021 0.4623 +8.1%
2022 0.4581 -0.9%

Norway compared with similar countries

  • Norway's 0.4581 is above the median for high income countries, which is 0.3016, 1.5× the median. (64 countries reporting)
  • Norway's 0.4581 is above the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 0.2903, 1.6× the median. (52 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Military personnel as a share of total population in Norway 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
1946 +716.5% 0.1301 1.06
1906 -78.2% 1.39 0.3026
1917 +38.6% 0.1993 0.2761
1930 -33.5% 0.2151 0.1429
2008 -31.3% 0.4872 0.3349
1910 -29.1% 0.2969 0.2104

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1900s 0.518 0.2969 1.39 5
1910s 0.2256 0.1993 0.2761 10
1920s 0.2429 0.2151 0.2676 10
1930s 0.1499 0.1359 0.1776 10
1940s 0.6909 0.1301 1.06 6
1950s 0.9552 0.9102 1.01 10
1960s 0.9379 0.8864 1.03 10
1970s 0.9527 0.8899 1 10
1980s 0.9491 0.8668 1.02 10
1990s 0.8487 0.7421 1.2 10
2000s 0.5291 0.3349 0.6047 10
2010s 0.4826 0.4301 0.5259 10
2020s 0.4493 0.4276 0.4623 3

Countries ranked near Norway

  1. 41 Colombia 0.4948 compare
  2. 42 Vietnam 0.4835 compare
  3. 43 South Sudan 0.4809 compare
  4. 45 Cuba 0.443 compare
  5. 46 Iraq 0.4379 compare
  6. 47 Venezuela 0.436 compare

See the full ranking of 194 places →

More population data for Norway

All data for Norway →

Frequently asked questions

What is military personnel as a share of total population in Norway?
Military personnel as a share of total population in Norway was 0.4581 in 2022, according to Our World in Data.
What is the highest military personnel as a share of total population recorded in Norway?
The highest recorded value was 1.39 in 1905.
What is the lowest military personnel as a share of total population recorded in Norway?
The lowest recorded value was 0.1301 in 1945.
How does Norway rank for military personnel as a share of total population?
Norway ranks 44th out of 194 countries with data for 2022.
Is military personnel as a share of total population rising or falling in Norway?
Over the last ten years it is down 4.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
Where does this Norway 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 Norway. 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/norway/

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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