Despite a significant gap in defence spending between Pakistan and India, Pakistan continues to maintain a capable and responsive military posture.
According to Data from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute’s (SIPRI) annual military expenditure fact sheet, published on 27 April 2026, India spent $92.1 billion on its military in 2025, making it the fifth largest defence spender in the world, while Pakistan allocated $11.9 billion over the same period – a ratio of 7.7 to one.
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The gap became directly consequential in May 2025, when India and Pakistan fought a brief but sharp military confrontation involving combat aircraft, drones and missiles.
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The clash forced India to revise its defence budget mid-year: capital outlays for military aircraft systems were revised 50 per cent above the original budget, while Indian Air Force operations and personnel costs rose 18 per cent from the initial plan.
On the other hand, Pakistan devoted 2.9 per cent of its gross domestic product to the military in 2025, compared with 2.3 per cent for India.
This reflects a longstanding pattern in which Pakistan, facing a much larger neighbour, prioritises defence even at proportionally greater fiscal cost.
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Over the decade from 2016 to 2025, India’s military spending grew by 39 per cent in real terms. Pakistan’s grew by 19 per cent over the same period.
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The absolute gap between the two has therefore widened considerably over the decade.
Following the May 2025 conflict, Pakistan placed new orders for aircraft and missiles with China, in addition to making payments on earlier procurement contracts nearing completion.
Pakistan’s total military spending rose by 11 per cent in 2025 as a result, the fastest annual growth rate between the two countries – though starting from a much smaller base.
Sources: All factual claims in this article are drawn directly from the SIPRI Military Expenditure Database Research.
