By the Numbers / April 3, 2026

The Cost of the Iran War

“It takes money to kill bad guys,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said as he sought $200 billion in funding for the Iran war in March. But the cost far exceeds money.

The Nation
(Iranian Press Center / AFP via Getty Images)


HUMAN COST


175

Number of Iranians killed in the February 28 US missile strike on the Shajarah Tayyebeh elementary school, most of whom were children


3,291

Number of Iranians killed as of March 24 since the United States and Israel started the war


1,072

Number of people killed in Lebanon as of March 24


22

Number of people killed in the Gulf states as of March 25


18

Number of people killed 
in Israel as of March 25


13

Number of US service members killed as of March 16


3.2m

Number of Iranians who have been displaced as of March 12


1m

Number of people in Lebanon who have been displaced as of March 23



FINANCIAL COST


$16.5b

Amount spent by the United States during the first 12 days of the war


$5.6b

Estimated value of munitions used during the first two days of the war


$3.5m

Estimated cost of one Tomahawk cruise missile


20%

Portion of the world’s oil and natural gas that passes through the Strait of Hormuz


30%

Portion of the world’s fertilizer exports that 
pass through the Strait 
of Hormuz


$119

Cost of a barrel of oil as of March 19


30–40%

Expected rise in the cost of fertilizer for farmers



GLOBAL COST


12

Number of countries Iran has struck in retaliation


5m

CO2 amount, in metric tons, emitted in the first two weeks of the war


56%

Portion of Americans who disapproved of the war two weeks after its start

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