Ukraine's war costs $190 million a day, and the bill is still rising
Ukrainian parliament reveals how much Ukraine pays for each day of war (photo: Getty Images)
One day of full-scale war costs the Ukrainian budget $190 million, and this figure does not include weapons provided by partners, according to Roksolana Pidlasa, head of the Ukrainian parliament's Budget Committee.
How much does one day of war cost?
According to Pidlasa, in 2026, one day of war costs the state budget $190 million. This figure covers only Ukraine's own spending and does not include weapons provided by allies.
By comparison, in 2024, the figure stood at $140 million. This means the cost of one day of defense has increased by about a third in just two years.
The head of the Budget Committee explained that spending is rising for several reasons:
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The army has grown larger, increasing the cost of maintaining it.
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The state guarantees support for a growing number of military families.
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Demand is increasing for medium- and long-range weapons capable of striking Russian oil refineries that finance the war.
In the first eight months of 2026, nearly $42 billion was spent on national security and defense. According to her, this figure does not include military aid provided by partners in kind, such as equipment or ammunition.
At the same time, Ukraine's own resources, consisting of budget revenues and domestic government bonds, amounted to only $39 billion over the same period.
This means that, for the first time, Ukraine is unable to cover even the share of defense spending that it previously financed on its own. By the end of the year, the Defense Forces say they will need an additional $27 billion.
Why budget revenues are lower than planned
Pidlasa said that Russia is deliberately targeting the sectors of the economy that generate the most revenue for the budget.
As a result, the budget received $1.35 billion less than expected from domestic and import value-added tax alone during the first eight months of the year. Ukraine lost a quarter of that amount in August alone.
According to Pidlasa, $190 million a day is far from the limit, and spending will continue to rise. She said this is another pragmatic reason why the US and Europe need to act faster to force Russia to stop the war.
A report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) said that Ukraine bears the highest military burden in the world.
In 2024, defense spending reached 34% of GDP, compared with 3.8% in 2015. That year, Ukraine spent $64.7 billion on its military, 2.9% more than the previous year.
In 2022, according to Newsweek estimates, Russia's war against Ukraine was costing the country about $900 million a day.
This figure included payments to soldiers, ammunition supplies, and repairs to damaged equipment.
