Moncton 
While not unexpected, Canada does not rank among the top 25 countries with the most powerful militaries in the world. This is per recent assessments by Global Firepower, a website specializing in global defence data.
HMCS Haida National Historic Site / Credit: Parks Canada
The United States leads the world with the most powerful military, followed by Russia and China in second and third place, respectively.
Canada ranks 27th out of the 145 countries studied.
The world’s most powerful militaries list includes India, South Korea, the United Kingdom, Japan, Türkiye, Pakistan, and Italy. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the countries with the least powerful militaries are Bhutan, Moldova, Suriname, Somalia, Benin, Liberia, Belize, Sierra Leone, the Central African Republic, and Iceland.
Mexico ranks 31st, and North Korea ranks 36th on the list.
Per the Global Firepower website, Military Strength Rankings are based on over 60 factors like troop numbers, military equipment, financial stability, geographic location, and available resources, which are accumulated in a PowerIndex score where a lower score signifies stronger military capability. They say 145 countries are ranked using their proprietary formula, which enables equitable comparison of military strength across nations, regardless of size or technological advancement.
Canada’s Ranking for Various Criteria:
PowerIndex score Criteria Ranking for Canada/Credit: Global Fire Power
Top 20 countries with the most powerful militaries:
- United States
- Russia
- China
- India
- South Korea
- United Kingdom
- Japan
- Turkiye
- Pakistan
- Italy
- France
- Brazil
- Indonesia
- Iran
- Egypt
- Australia
- Israel
- Ukraine
- Germany
- Spain
15 Countries With Least Powerful Militaries
131. Mauritania
132. Gabon
133. Madagascar
134. Panama
135. Kosovo
136. Iceland
137. Central African Republic
138. Sierra Leone
139. Beliz
140. Liberia
141. Benin
142. Somalia
143. Suriname
144.Moldova
145. Bhutan
