Serbia: Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure)

Key figures

What the numbers say

In 2025, Serbia's military expenditure (% of general government expenditure) rose 0.11 percentage points on 2024 (from 6.32% to 6.44%).

Across the 24 yearly changes before that (2001 to 2024), the average change was −0.42 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 1.17 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 0.5 standard deviations above that average, so it was an ordinary year: it sits within the range of normal year-to-year movement.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 1.16 percentage points in 2021 and the biggest yearly fall was 4.52 percentage points in 2001. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2016 to 2025 the straight-line trend is upward, about 0.19 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 71% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

A straight-line projection, tested first

Extending that straight line gives about 6.85% for 2028. We show this only because the same method, fitted on earlier years, predicted 2023 to 2025 better than "no change" would have: its average miss was 0.39%, against 0.82% for assuming no change. Treat it as a continuation of the recent pattern, not a forecast of events: it cannot see a recession, a policy change or a revision to the data.

See how a linear trend forecast works and the guide on forecasting without fooling yourself.

How it compares

In 2025, Serbia had the 52nd highest value of the 149 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Serbia in the 2025 ranking

• Denmark — 48th of 149: 6.64%
• Cameroon — 49th of 149: 6.53%
• Gabon — 50th of 149: 6.45%
• Indonesia — 52nd of 149: 6.32%
• Mozambique — 53rd of 149: 6%
• Congo, Rep. — 54th of 149: 5.98%

What this measures

Military expenditure expressed as a percentage of general government expenditure

Limitations: SIPRI strives to compile reliable, consistent military expenditure data by assessing multiple sources, but accuracy depends on the quality and transparency of those sources. Challenges arise from two key issues: whether reported figures reflect actual spending and how closely they match SIPRI’s definition. While data is generally accurate in developed and many developing countries, weak governance, corruption, and secret transfers in others can lead to major discrepancies. SIPRI sometimes makes estimates, when sources conflict or lack coverage, introducing uncertainty, especially for countries like China or the UAE.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a weighted average.

All 26 values

Military expenditure (% of general government expenditure) in nearby economies

• Albania — 6.71% (2025)
• Armenia — 19.89% (2025)
• Austria — 2% (2025)
• Azerbaijan — 17.68% (2025)
• Belarus — 5.71% (2025)
• Belgium — 3.67% (2025)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 1.56% (2025)
• Bulgaria — 5.2% (2025)
• Croatia — 4.14% (2025)

More public sector data for Serbia

• Armed forces personnel, total — 32,000 (2020)
• Armed forces personnel (% of total labor force) — 1.01% (2020)
• Military expenditure (current LCU) — 288.94 billion (2025)
• Military expenditure (% of GDP) — 2.76% (2025)
• Military expenditure (current USD) — 2.78 billion (2025)
• Intentional homicides, female (per 100,000 female) — 0.65 (2023)
• Intentional homicides, male (per 100,000 male) — 2.05 (2023)
• Intentional homicides (per 100,000 people) — 1.31 (2023)
• Arms imports (SIPRI trend indicator values) — 146 million (2025)
• Statistical performance indicators (SPI): Pillar 1 data use score (scale 0-100)

Reading data like this

• Where to find free public data, and how to check it before you trust it — 2 min read
• Data analysis examples: 6 worked from one dataset — 3 min read
• Real change or random noise? A plain guide to reading your numbers — 2 min read

Questions people ask

What is Serbia's military expenditure (% of general government expenditure)?

6.44% in 2025, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2000?

It is down 10 percentage points from 16.43% in 2000. The highest value was 16.43% in 2000 and the lowest 4.14% in 2015.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator MS.MIL.XPND.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: SIPRI Military Expenditure Database, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), uri: https://www.sipri.org/databases Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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