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 South Africa and DPRK in 2025.

So, South Africa is inferior to DPRK by the number of soldiers in service, although it surpasses by the 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, South Africa with its GDP of 989 billion dollars (which was calculated by purchasing power parity) surpasses DPRK with its GDP of 48 billion dollars in times.

South Africa and DPRK send 0,23 % and 9,88 % of GDP to the military expenses, respectively. As a result, the military budget of South Africa is 2.27 billion dollars and of DPRK is 4.74 billion dollars.

Hence, the military expenses of DPRK are times higher than in South Africa.

The comparison of armament     up↑

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

South Africa and DPRK have naval forces. The total displacement of the military fleet of South Africa is 19,2 thousand tons, DPRK - 100,9 thousand tons.

DPRK is in the nuclear club. In the country’s arsenal they have 50 nuclear warheads. South Africa doesn’t have nuclear weapons at present.

The comparison by the combat power index    up↑

While contrasting the armed forces of South Africa and DPRK 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:

● South Africa - 40 position in the world according to the combat power index 0.6889;

● DPRK - 34 position in the world according to the combat power index 0.6016;

Thus, according to the GlobalFirepower, the more combat-ready are the armed forces of DPRK.