The Cost of America's War with Iran
Estimated US military spending since April 20, 2024, the day Congress passed $26B in emergency security aid for Israel. Operations, weapons, air defense, and military aid. All figures sourced.
Total Cost Since April 20, 2024
$0ESTIMATED SPEND RATE
— per day
— per hour
— per secondper sec
Financial cost only. The human cost, lives lost, the displaced, the bereaved on all sides, is not in this number, and cannot be.
Why This Exists
On March 2nd 2026, I read that three US F-15s had been shot down by friendly fire near Kuwait. My first thought: what did those planes cost? My second: what does all of this cost? The answer was scattered across congressional appropriations, Pentagon press releases, and defense research reports. This is the attempt to put it in one place, with every source linked.
- Peter Koverda
Escalation Timeline
How We Got Here
Cumulative estimated US spending tied to the Iran conflict, from April 20, 2024 (H.R.8034 signing) through the start of combat operations in February 2026.
Legislation Support ops Iran–Israel Deployments US combat
Your Share
What Each US Taxpayer Has Paid
Based on ~150 million US tax filers. (IRS Statistics of Income)
Per US Taxpayer: Total Since April 2024
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Live • — US taxpayers
Per-taxpayer cost: war vs. selected federal programs (annual)
War with Iran: Total since Apr 2024
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National Science Foundation (annual)
~$9B FY2025 ÷ 150M taxpayers
EPA Annual Budget
~$6B FY2025 ÷ 150M taxpayers
HUD Homeless Assistance Grants (annual)
~$3.3B FY2025 ÷ 150M taxpayers
Opportunity Cost
What $43 Billion Could Have Funded Instead
Figures from published federal program costs and national averages.
Since You Opened This Page
What the US Has Spent While You've Been Reading
Every counter below started at zero when you loaded this page and has been climbing at — per second, the current active operations burn rate. Each number shows how many of that thing the US could have fully paid for with just what it spent since you arrived.
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0 years of school lunches funded $4.25/lunch × 180 days = $765/yr
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0 children covered by CHIP for one year $1,700/child · CMS FY2024
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0 Pell Grants awarded $5,300 avg. · Dept. of Education AY2023–24
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0 years of public college tuition covered $11,610 avg. in-state · College Board 2024–25
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0 Americans' full annual healthcare costs covered $14,570/person · CMS 2023
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0.0 teacher salaries for one year $65,000 avg. · NCES/BLS 2024
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0.0 affordable housing units built $100,000/unit · NAHB 2024
Transparency
Sources & Methodology
All figures are estimates from publicly available data. Precise totals are not disclosed by the US government.
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JINSA: Missile and Interceptor Cost Estimates During the US–Israel–Iran War (July 21, 2025)
Primary source for weapons unit costs and THAAD stockpile depletion: $12.7M per THAAD interceptor, $2.7–4.7B total US air defense costs during the Twelve-Day War. Full PDF · Summary
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US Congress: H.R.8034 Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024
$26.38B for Israel including Iron Dome replenishment, FMF, and US war reserve stock drawdown. Congress.gov · CBO Estimate
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US Congress: H.R.1968 Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2025
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Wikipedia: Twelve-Day War (June 13–24, 2025)
Iran–Israel armed conflict documentation including weapons used, casualty figures, and ceasefire date. Twelve-Day War article
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CSIS: Operation Midnight Hammer Analysis
Expert analysis of the June 22, 2025 US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities. CSIS Analysis
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US State Department / EU Council: UN Sanctions Snapback (September 2025)
E3-triggered JCPOA snapback; UN sanctions effective September 27, 2025. State Dept · EU Council
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US Air Force: B-2 Spirit Fact Sheet
Official cost-per-flying-hour: ~$130,000/hr (direct operating cost, lower bound). AF.mil
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Costs of War Project: Brown University Watson Institute
Reference for total war costs including veteran care and debt obligations not in this counter. costsofwar.watson.brown.edu
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IRS Statistics of Income
~150 million individual returns filed annually; basis for all per-taxpayer calculations. irs.gov/statistics
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Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
Federal appropriations data and bill cost estimates. cbo.gov
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SIPRI: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute
Military spending data and global defense budget comparisons. sipri.org
$43B cost breakdown (since April 20, 2024):
The tracker starts on April 20, 2024 — the date President Biden signed H.R.8034, committing $26.38B in emergency Israel security assistance. This represents the first large, direct US financial commitment in response to escalating Iran-Israel conflict. All subsequent appropriations, operations, and air defense expenditures are counted from that date forward.
| Component | Primary Source | Estimate |
|---|
Counter: Anchored at $43B on March 2, 2026 (UTC midnight), incrementing at $2,315/second (~$200M/day), reflecting the active operations rate since Epic Fury began February 28.
What is included: Direct US military operational costs; air defense interceptors expended; FMF appropriations; weapons drawdowns to Israel for Iran-related operations; Iran-proxy (Houthi) operation costs.
What is not included: Long-term veteran healthcare and disability (30–40% of total war cost historically, per Brown University); interest on war-related debt; intelligence operations; economic disruption.
Human costs: Financial cost only. Casualties, displacement, and other human costs are not counted here.