The United States and Russia lead the world in naval submarine capacity for 2026, operating 66 submarines each, according to global military rankings from Global Firepower
China closely follows in third place with 61 vessels
Regional forces also maintain significant underwater fleets, with Iran and Pakistan tied at 25 submarines each, followed by North Korea (24), Japan (23), and South Korea (22)
Notably, Iran operates more submarines than the United Kingdom (10) and France (9) combined
Further down the global rankings, nations like Germany, Australia, and Brazil maintain smaller fleets of 6 submarines each
