US Vs Iran: Here Is A Head-To-Head Comparison Of The Military Assets Of The Two Countries

(MENAFN- Live Mint) The US and Iran are on the brink of a war as tensions continue to mount between the two sides, who have been at odds since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. The US has moved considerable amounts of its war power to the region in the past few weeks, including aircraft carriers, even as regional allies continue full-scale efforts to de-escalate.

While the US, the world’s leading military power, has an overwhelming advantage on paper against Iran, if the two countries go to war, the ongoing conflict in Ukraine has shown that absolute numbers can be deceptive on the battlefield.

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Here is a look at how the US and Iran stack up against each other

Ranking

According to the Global Firepower Rankings, 2026, the US has the most powerful military in the world. Iran, on the other hand, is placed 16th in the ranking.

Active personnel

The US dwarfs Iran when it comes to the number of active-duty personnel. The US has around 1.33 million active personnel, while Iran is estimated to have 610,000. The US has an additional 799,500 reserve personnel, and Iran has 350,000 reservists who can be called up in case of a war.

Military budget

The disparity between the US and Iran becomes even clearer when it comes to defence budget allocation, with Washington splurging around $895 billion. Iran has a meager annual defence budget of $15 billion.

Military aircrafts

The US has an arsenal of over 13,000 aircraft, which are among the world’s most advanced fighter jets. Iran, on the other hand, is estimated to have around 550 aircraft. The Iranian airpower is dominated by an aging fleet of Soviet-era MiGs and Sukhois. Iran also has several Chinese-made Chengdu J-10C and indigenously developed fighter jets, which are based on the Northrop F-5 airframe from the 1960s and 70s.

Naval vessels

For a battle on the seas, the US could bring around 440 vessels, including 11 aircraft carriers, nine helicopter carriers, 66 submarines, and 83 destroyers. Iran brings a total of 109 naval assets, with no aircraft carriers or destroyers. Iran’s naval fleet is dominated by 25 submarines and 21 patrol vessels.

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Though it is outnumbered by the US here as well, a land battle could be where Iran could hold out. In terms of tanks, the US has 4,666 of them in its possession, while Iran holds 2,675. The US has a total of 409,660 armored vehicles, while Iran has 75,939. When it comes to self-propelled artillery, the US has 1,521 against Iran’s 424. The US has 1,878 pieces of towed artillery, and Iran has 1,803. The US also has an arsenal of 1731 mobile rocket projectors, while Iran has 1,550.

Missiles

While the US has around 25,000–30,000 missiles across all ranges, Iran’s strength is its array of around 3,000 ballistic missiles, which, unlike the American stockpile, is stored at home.

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Another of Iran’s strengths is its drones. While the US has more advanced military drones, Iran’s strength lies in its kamikaze drones, which are much cheaper. Iran relies on its indigenously developed Shahed-13 and Shahed-139 drones used for long-range, one-way strikes. Originally developed by Iran, the Shahed-136 has been battle-tested by Russia in the ongoing war with Ukraine and is widely seen as one of the breakout military technological developments in recent years.

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