The following is the most recent Department of Defense demographic profile.
From the report
This Demographics Report, which was prepared for the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD), presents a synthesis of demographic information describing members and families in the military community in fiscal year 2022.1 Active-duty service branches include DOD’s Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Space Force; and the reserve components include DOD’s Army National Guard, Army Reserve, Navy Reserve, Marine Corps Reserve, Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve, and Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Coast Guard Reserve.
Overview of Military Personnel
The total number of military and civilian personnel is nearly 3.4 million strong, including DOD active-duty military personnel (1,304,720); DHS’s Coast Guard active-duty members (39,485); DOD ready reserve and DHS Coast Guard Reserve members (994,860); members of the retired reserve (183,728) and Standby Reserve (5,253); and DOD civilian personnel (appropriated funds (APF) and nonappropriated funds (NAF)) (867,308).
Active-Duty Member Highlights
Service Branches. In the DOD active-duty force, the Army has the largest number of active-duty members (461,657), followed by Navy (340,065), Air Force (320,421), Marine Corps (174,577), and Space Force (8,000). From 2005 to 2022, the Air Force (-8.3%), Army (-5.1%), Navy (-5.0%), and Marine Corps (-2.9%), all experienced a decrease in the number of members.
Demographic Highlights. The DOD active-duty force is comprised of 81.8 percent enlisted members (1,067,756) and 18.2 percent officers (236,964). Men (1,075,753) represent 82.5 percent of the DOD active-duty force, while women (228,966) represent 17.5 percent of the DOD active-duty force.
Overall, the average age of the active-duty force is 28.5 years. The average age for active-duty enlisted members is 27.3 years, and the average age for active-duty officers is 34.3 years. Most enlisted members (99.3%) have at least a high school diploma/GED or some college experience, and the majority of active-duty officers have a bachelor’s degree or higher (84.0%).
Over two-thirds (68.8%) of active-duty members (897,340) self-identify as White, while approximately one-third (31.2%) of active-duty members (407,380) self-identify with a racial minority group (i.e., Black or African American, Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, Multi-racial, or Unknown). Regarding ethnicity, 18.4 percent of active-duty members self-identify as Hispanic or Latino. While the active-duty population is located throughout the world, the three primary areas in which active-duty members are assigned are the United States and its territories2 (87.5%), East Asia (6.3%), and Europe (5.1%).
Reserve and Guard (Selected Reserve) Member Highlights
Reserve Components. The ready reserve includes the selected reserve, the Individual Ready Reserve, and the Inactive National Guard. This report primarily focuses on the selected reserve, unless otherwise specified. The total selected reserve force consists of 772,910 members in seven components. The Army National Guard (329,705) has the largest number of selected reserve members, followed by Army Reserve (176,171), Air National Guard (104,984), Air Force Reserve (68,048), Navy Reserve (55,224), Marine Corps Reserve (32,599), and DHS’s Coast Guard Reserve (6,179).
Demographic Highlights. The selected reserve is composed of 82.4 percent enlisted members (636,572) and 17.6 percent officers (136,338). Men (605,940) represent 78.4 percent of the selected reserve force, while women (166,957) represent 21.6 percent of the selected reserve force. Overall, the average age of the selected reserve is 31.9 years. The average age for selected reserve enlisted members is 30.4 years, and the average age for selected reserve officers is 39.2 years. Most selected reserve enlisted members (91.6%) have at least a high school diploma/GED or some college experience, and most selected reserve officers (89.2%) have a bachelor’s degree or higher.
Almost three-quarters (72.9%) of selected reserve members (563,366) self-identify as White, while approximately one-quarter (27.1%) of selected reserve members (209,544) self-identify with a racial minority group (i.e., Black or African American, Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, Multi-racial, or Unknown). Regarding ethnicity, 15.4 percent of selected reserve members self-identify as Hispanic or Latino. The majority (99.1%) of the selected reserve is located throughout the United States and its territories.
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