Armed Forces recruitment figures show a 19% increase in people joining UK regular forces

There's been a 19% increase in people joining the UK regular forces from 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025.

That equates to 13,450 people joining Britain's regular Armed Forces, an increase of 2,150 compared with the previous 12-month period.

UK Regulars include full-time service personnel and mobilised Reservists as per the latest quarterly service personnel statistics.

• Is this the world's most beautiful military recruitment ad?
• Think Army's not for you? Think again, says new ad campaign
• What will sixth-generation aircraft like the Tempest mean for the future of air combat?

Overall UK Service Personnel stats

Looking at the overall strength of the UK Forces Service Personnel – that's the number of military personnel employed by the Ministry of Defence – the figures have gone down in the period 1 April 2024 to 1 April 2025, but only by 1% (1,340 personnel).

It means the current total strength of the UK forces is 181,890 personnel, with 137,000 of these personnel in the UK Regular forces.

They are made up of:

:: Royal Navy / Royal Marines - 32,150

:: British Army - 74,400

:: Royal Air Force - 30,450

Intake by Service

Thirteen thousand four hundred and fifty people joined the UK Regular Armed Forces in the 12 months leading up to 31 March 2025.

The recruitment increase was highest in the Royal Navy and Royal Marines at 34.2%, then the RAF at 26.8% and the British Army had the smallest increase in recruitment at 12.2%.

Outflow by service

Although the number of people joining the Regulars has increased, it's still not as high as the number leaving.

The gap has narrowed since last year, with a shortfall of 1,140 between those joining and those leaving – the gap was more than 4,430 the year before.

Across all three services, voluntary outflow (VO) was the most common reason for trained people leaving. It accounted for 61.7% of the Outflow in the 12 months to 31 March 2025.

The latest report says there is "no single reason" for voluntary outflow, although personnel who completed the Armed Forces Continuous Attitude Survey cite reasons such as "the impact of service life on family and personal life and opportunities outside the Armed Forces".

The full quarterly service personnel statistics can be found here.