The US has a strong military presence both domestically and overseas, with 1.5 million active-duty service members stationed at home or abroad.
In addition to millions of troops, the Department of Defense manages 568,000 facilities, covering 27 million acres, across 4,790 military sites worldwide. For context, that’s roughly the size of the state of Virginia.
The US military is tasked with training troops and defending US citizens on American soil, as well as protecting its national security interests by defending strategic supply chains, deterring attacks and future aggression, and participating in bilateral, regional, and multilateral defense programs.
Where are US troops based in the US?
As of March 2025, the US had 2.6 million military personnel, including active-duty troops, reserve, and civilian workers stationed domestically. Of these, 1.1 million were active-duty troops across 50 US states, Washington, DC, and 5 US territories.
Roughly 50% of these troops are in five states:
- California (157,477 )
- Virginia (119,878)
- Texas (112,915)
- North Carolina (94,805)
- Florida (67,115)
Notably, these figures do not include troops deployed in support of contingency operations, those on temporary duty, or those on aircraft carriers or other naval fleets.
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Domestic military bases are spread across multiple states, but some states have a higher concentration of military installations due to factors including strategic location (such as along the coast), or access to resources, like power plants and critical infrastructure. For example, Virginia hosts nearly a quarter of domestic Navy members due to its proximity to major East Coast ports.
Similarly, California hosts 34.8% of Marine Corps members because of the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego (where new members from the western two-thirds of the US are trained), along with 27.9% of active-duty naval troops.
Space Command is in Colorado Springs at the Peterson Space Force Base; Colorado also hosts 46.8% of active-duty Space Force personnel.
As of March 2025, 23 states reported having a higher count of reserve troops than active-duty personnel, with the total reserve force numbering 736,050 members across the US.
The US Army National Guard and the Air National Guard operate under a dual state-federal mission. While they are state entities under the command of their respective governors during peacetime, they can be federalized and come under the control of the president during a national emergency or war. This structure allows them to support both state and national needs.
The Reserve components of each branch of the US military, including the Army Reserve, Navy Reserve, Marine Corps Reserve, Air Force Reserve, and Coast Guard Reserve, are organized at the federal level. They provide trained units and qualified active duty armed forces during war, national emergency, or other operations to ensure US national security.
Where are US troops based overseas?
In terms of overseas deployments, there were over 243,048 US military and civilian personnel stationed in foreign countries as of March 2025:
- 177,209 active-duty
- 29,445 National Guard/reserve
- 36,394 DoD civilians
The top five countries with the highest number of stationed US troops are Japan (52,793), Germany (34,547), South Korea (22,844), Italy (12,332), and the United Kingdom (10,046).
Where US military members are stationed overseas has shifted over time. For example, at the height of the Cold War in the early 1950s, there were over 400,000 troops stationed in Europe to prevent the expansion of the Soviet Union These numbers dropped following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.
US troop levels in foreign countries change depending on national security interests. The US has several strategic priorities in different regions, demonstrating the long-standing involvement of American armed forces in global security.
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