Brazil Leads South America Defense Spending at USD 23.9 Billion
South America’s defense bill climbed in 2025, with Brazil keeping the region’s top spot at about USD 23.9 billion. Uruguay also posted one of the steepest relative rises in military spending, according to SIPRI’s annual report released on Saturday.
Brazil’s 2025 defense budget
Brazil consolidated its position as South America’s leading defense spender during 2025 with a military budget of approximately USD 23.9 billion. That was a 13% increase year on year, leaving Brazil well ahead of the region’s other military budgets in the latest figures.
The regional rise was not isolated. South America’s military spending increased by 3.4% compared with 2024, and SIPRI said that pattern matched a broader global trend of armed forces modernization, open conflicts, and growing geopolitical tensions.
Uruguay’s sharp rise
Uruguay recorded one of the steepest relative increases in military spending in South America during 2025. The scale of that jump stood out because it came in a region where overall defense outlays were already moving higher year on year.
For governments across South America, the latest numbers point to a wider shift in budget priorities. Brazil’s absolute lead and Uruguay’s faster pace of growth show two different ways military spending is rising: one through size, the other through speed.
SIPRI annual report
SIPRI released its annual report on Saturday, setting out the 2025 figures against the lower spending level recorded in 2024. The report leaves Brazil fixed at the top of South America’s defense rankings, while Uruguay emerges as one of the region’s fastest movers relative to its earlier spending base.
For readers tracking how defense budgets are changing across the region, the immediate takeaway is straightforward: South America spent more on the military in 2025 than in 2024, and Brazil still dominated the totals. The next reference point is the same report’s comparison with earlier years, which will be used to judge whether this rise becomes a longer regional pattern or stays a one-year increase.
