The armies’ comparison by the size

The army size directly depends on the country’s population and its mobilization potential. In the table below there is the information about human resources, mobilization potential and armed forces size of Russia and China in 2025.

Thus, Russia is inferior to China in the number of soldiers in service as well as in its mobilization potential.

Let’s note that the above mentioned data show only the quantitative characteristics without taking into account the professional level of military personnel and the quality (basic skills, physical condition, etc.) of the mobilized and conscripts.

It’s more difficult to estimate such parameters as motivation, combat spirit and soldier’s steadfastness, the ability and wish to perform their duties up to the end.

The comparison of military budgets    up↑

The military financing greatly depends on the country’s wealth – the stronger the economy is developed, the more finance can be allocated for the military expenses. As for the economy size, China with its GDP of 38154 billion dollars (which was calculated by purchasing power parity) surpasses Russia with its GDP of 6905 billion dollars in times.

Russia and China send 1,82 % and 0,7 % of GDP to the military expenses, respectively. As a result, the military budget of Russia is 126 billion dollars and of China is 266.9 billion dollars.

Hence, the military expenses of China are times higher than in Russia.

The comparison of armament     up↑

In the table below there is the information about some types of armament which are at the disposal of Russia and China (we account the total amount of weapons in 2025, without considering modifications, the year of release and departmental affiliation):

Russia and China have naval forces. The total displacement of the military fleet of Russia is 812,4 thousand tons, China - 1285,9 thousand tons.

Russia and China are in the nuclear club. Russia possesses 5449 nuclear warheads, whereas, China has 600 nuclear warheads.

The comparison by the combat power index    up↑

While contrasting the armed forces of Russia and China one can orient on military strength ranking from GlobalFirepower (GFP). The GFP experts have analyzed more than 60 different factors which affect the defense ability of different countries and the effectiveness of their armed forces. As a result, they have calculated the combat power index. The lower it is, the stronger in the military sense the country is.

As of 2024, the countries under consideration take the following positions in GlobalFirepower rating:

● Russia - 2 position in the world according to the combat power index 0.0788;

● China - 3 position in the world according to the combat power index 0.0788;