HEAD TO HEAD
Iran vs Russia
Verdict
Russia holds a 83–17 advantage over Iran on the Relative Advantage Index, a decisive margin.
The margin is driven by military spending (96% of the combined total, $190bn) and economic size (GDP) (82% of the combined total, $2.2tn).
1 factor — nuclear warheads — could not be scored because the figure is unpublished for at least one side. Those factors are excluded and the remaining weights renormalised, never substituted.
Factor by factor
| Factor | Iran | Share | Russia | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Military spending SIPRI Milex | $7.4bn | 4%96% | $190bn | 33% |
Economic size (GDP) World Bank WDI | $475bn | 18%82% | $2.2tn | 27% |
Active personnel COW NMC | 610.0k | 34%66% | 1.2m | 20% |
Logistics & power projection OurAirports | 76 | 20%80% | 307 | 20% |
Shares are each side's portion of the combined total for that factor. Weights are renormalised across the factors both sides publish — see the methodology. Data read 2026-10-22.
