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The US military in metrics and demographics

The US military had about 2.1 million troops as of March 2025, a force that has gradually declined since the late 1980s. Nearly two-thirds of military members are on active duty, stationed in the US and abroad. Let’s get to know the military from different data angles.

USAFacts

Of the military personnel, nearly 1.3 million are active-duty troops, and about 765,000 are National Guard/Reserves.

Active duty military troops

By 2024, active-duty military personnel were down 48.5% from their record high during the Vietnam War in 1968. They dropped again in 1991 at the end of the Cold War. Troop levels have remained relatively stable since then, even during conflicts in Afghanistan in 2001 and Iraq in 2003.

From 2010 to 2023, racial diversity rose in the Army (2.9 percentage points) and the Air Force (4.2 percentage points). It fell in the Navy (-0.5 percentage points) and Marine Corps (-1.3 percentage points).

As of 2023, women comprised 17.7% of all active-duty military personnel, totaling 225,119 members. That’s up from 2005, when the share of women actively serving in all military branches was 14.6%.

In March, about 177,000 troops, or 13.6% of active-duty troops, were stationed abroad (including US territories). Most were in Germany (about 35,000 troops) and Japan (53,000).

California, Virginia, and Texas each had more than 100,000 troops assigned to bases in their state, accounting for 34.5% of active-duty troops. Twenty-three states, including Washington, DC, have more than 10,000 troops.