Brazilvs China
On Global Firepower's 2026 index, China (#3) holds a solid edge over Brazil (#11).
- China has nuclear weapons; Brazil has none.
- China has aircraft carriers; Brazil has none.
- China has destroyers; Brazil has none.
Who leads in each area
- People and moneyChina leads 3 of 4
- Land forcesChina leads 5 of 5
- Air powerChina leads 7 of 7
- Naval forcesChina leads 7 of 7
- Nuclear weaponsChina leads 2 of 2
Leads count raw numbers in each category. Larger is not always stronger: a modern fleet can beat a bigger, older one.
People and money
Who can be put in uniform, and how much is spent keeping them there.
$23.9B
Military spending
$336B376K
Active personnel
2.04M1.34M
Reserves
510K200K
Paramilitary
625KSpending is SIPRI's 2025 estimate in US dollars (Brazil: 1.6% of GDP; China: 1.7% of GDP).
Land forces
Armour and artillery: the weight an army can put on the ground.
294
Tanks
5,87022K
Armored vehicles
152K149
Self-propelled artillery
2,940412
Towed artillery
1,40082
Rocket artillery
2,770Air power
Fixed-wing and rotary aircraft across all branches.
495
Total aircraft
3,52944
Fighters
1,44330
Attack aircraft
371186
Helicopters
1,0070
Attack helicopters
2810
Tankers
9107
Transports
287Naval forces
Hull counts, from carriers down to patrol boats.
69
Total fleet
8410
Aircraft carriers
31
Helicopter carriers
46
Submarines
610
Destroyers
538
Frigates
462
Corvettes
50Nuclear weapons
Estimated warheads in military stockpiles, January 2026.
0
Warheads
6200
Deployed warheads
34Compare other countries
Related matchups
- United StatesvsChina
- ChinavsIndia
- ChinavsRussia
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- ChinavsJapan
- ChinavsAustralia
- BrazilvsIndia
- ChinavsUnited Kingdom
Profiles: Brazil and China. Sources: Global Firepower 2026, SIPRI Military Expenditure 2025 (Apr 2026), SIPRI Yearbook 2026: World Nuclear Forces.