US Military Budget Breakdown
Where does the $886 billion defense budget actually go?
FY2025 Budget by Category
- Operations & Maintenance ($296B, 33%): Day-to-day costs of running the military — fuel, training, equipment maintenance, base operations, and logistics.
- Military Personnel ($178B, 20%): Pay, benefits, housing allowances, and healthcare for 1.3 million active-duty and 800,000 reserve personnel.
- Procurement ($170B, 19%): New weapons systems, vehicles, aircraft, ships, and equipment purchases.
- Research & Development ($145B, 16%): Next-generation technology including hypersonic weapons, AI, space systems, and cyber capabilities.
- Military Construction ($15B, 2%): New facilities, base upgrades, family housing.
- Other ($82B, 10%): Defense-wide agencies, classified programs, nuclear weapons (DOE), and management funds.
By Military Branch
- Department of the Army: ~$185B
- Department of the Navy (including Marines): ~$220B
- Department of the Air Force (including Space Force): ~$215B
- Defense-Wide: ~$266B
Top Procurement Programs
The most expensive weapons programs in the FY2025 budget include the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter ($16.6B), Columbia-class ballistic missile submarines ($9.6B), Virginia-class attack submarines ($7.4B), B-21 Raider bomber ($5.3B), and the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) fighter program.
Hidden Defense Costs
The $886B figure only covers the Department of Defense base budget and Overseas Contingency Operations. Total national security spending — including Veterans Affairs ($325B), Homeland Security ($62B), nuclear weapons (DOE, $38B), and intelligence agencies (~$100B) — exceeds $1.4 trillion annually.