According to the CIA World Factbook, military spending worldwide amounts to a staggering 741 billion dollars annually. This figure represents approximately 1.5% of the world's GDP of $49,000 billion ($49 trillion). The United States has a $277 billion defense budget which accounts for 37% of the world's total.
Comparing military expenditures to a nation's GDP, however, presents a different picture. North Korea, for example, spends an amazing 33.9% of its GDP on their military. Some of the top spenders are listed below. The United States comes in 46th on this list at 3.2%.