HEAD TO HEAD
Iran vs United States
Verdict
United States holds a 92–8 advantage over Iran on the Relative Advantage Index, a decisive margin.
The margin is driven by military spending (99% of the combined total, $954bn) and economic size (GDP) (98% of the combined total, $28.8tn).
1 factor — nuclear warheads — could not be scored because the figure is unpublished for at least one side.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 | United States | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Military spending SIPRI Milex | $7.4bn | 1%99% | $954bn | 33% |
Economic size (GDP) World Bank WDI | $475bn | 2%98% | $28.8tn | 27% |
Active personnel COW NMC | 610.0k | 31%69% | 1.4m | 20% |
Logistics & power projection OurAirports | 76 | 5%95% | 1.6k | 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.
