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Annual Military Spending
(Billions of 1996 Dollars in Outlays)
| Year | Spending | Year | Spending |
| 1945 | 962.7 | 1971 | 311.7 |
| 1946 | 500.6 | 1972 | 289.1 |
| 1947 | 133.7 | 1973 | 259.5 |
| 1948 | 94.7 | 1974 | 243.8 |
| 1949 | 127.8 | 1975 | 242.0 |
| 1950 | 133.0 | 1976 | 234.0 |
| 1951 | 225.7 | 1977 | 232.7 |
| 1952 | 408.5 | 1978 | 233.2 |
| 1953 | 437.0 | 1979 | 237.4 |
| 1954 | 402.1 | 1980 | 246.2 |
| 1955 | 344.5 | 1981 | 260.8 |
| 1956 | 320.7 | 1982 | 282.0 |
| 1957 | 322.4 | 1983 | 303.2 |
| 1958 | 317.9 | 1984 | 318.1 |
| 1959 | 306.9 | 1985 | 343.7 |
| 1960 | 289.6 | 1986 | 363.7 |
| 1961 | 291.1 | 1987 | 371.1 |
| 1962 | 300.0 | 1988 | 372.8 |
| 1963 | 293.3 | 1989 | 376.2 |
| 1964 | 294.8 | 1990 | 358.7 |
| 1965 | 268.3 | 1991 | 316.5 |
| 1966 | 297.3 | 1992 | 328.6 |
| 1967 | 354.1 | 1993 | 312.1 |
| 1968 | 388.9 | 1994 | 290.3 |
| 1969 | 371.8 | 1995 | 272.1 |
| 1970 | 346.0 | 1996 | 265.6 (est.) |
Total cost of the Cold War (1948-1991) in 1996 dollars = $13.1 Trillion.
Average annual military spending during Cold War = $298.5 Billion.
Average annual military spending during peacetime Cold War (excluding Korean and Vietnam War years) = $285.4 Billion.
Prepared by Martin Calhoun, Senior Research Analyst, July 9, 1996.
Sources: DOD, CDI.