The staggering cost of arming an infantryman during World War II varied wildly depending on which nation was doing the purchasing. A new analysis of standard-issue rifles in 1945 reveals that the Soviet Union could equip seven soldiers for the price of a single American rifle, a difference that underscores the vast economic divide between the major powers. The study examined the cost of the standard infantry rifle for five nations in 1945, converting all prices to 2026 US dollars for comparison. The Soviet Union ranked as the cheapest, with its legendary Model 1891/30 Mosin-Nagant bolt-action rifle costing just 200 rubles, or roughly $5, at the time.
Adjusted for inflation, that works out to about $85 today. The Mosin-Nagant, which first entered service with the imperial Russian army in 1891, was still the standard Red Army rifle through 1945. More than 37 million of these rifles were produced across all variants. Surprisingly, they remain in active frontline use in some conflicts even today, including in Ukraine.
Japan ranked fourth with the Type 99 Arisaka rifle, the final iteration of a famous bolt-action series. The Type 99 entered service in 1939, designed as a shorter weapon chambered for a more powerful 7. 7mm cartridge than the earlier Type 38, which used a 6. 5mm round.
The Type 99 served alongside the older Type 38 until the end of the war, and many remained in service afterward, appearing as late as the Vietnam War and conflicts in Indonesia. Some 3. 5 million Type 99 rifles were manufactured across nine arsenals, including facilities in Japan, Manchuria, China, and Korea. In 1945, the unit cost was $25, which equals roughly $370 today.
In third place was the German Mauser Kar98k, a true icon of the World War II era. Developed from earlier Mauser designs, including the Gewehr 98 of World War I, the Kar98k fired a 7. 92×57mm cartridge from a five-round internal magazine. More than 14.
6 million were produced during the war. The Kar98k remains in ceremonial use with the modern German armed forces, the Bundeswehr. Its manufacturing cost in 1945 was 55 German marks, equivalent to about $407 in 2026 dollars. In second place was the British Lee-Enfield, specifically the No.
4 Mark I rifle. The Lee-Enfield name had long been associated with a superb series of bolt-action rifles, starting with the Magazine Lee-Enfield of 1895 and evolving through the famous “Smelly” SMLE Mark III of 1907. All Lee-Enfields featured a distinctive ten-round magazine, fed by two five-round stripper clips of . 303 British ammunition.
The No. 4 Mark I, which entered service in 1941, was a new simplification of the design with a heavier barrel, a redesigned sight, and a spike bayonet. It was produced in large numbers during the war, including under contract in the United States and Canada. A 1945 No.
4 rifle with bayonet cost £8 and 10 shillings, translating to about $628 in today’s money. The most expensive infantry rifle on the list was American-made: the M1 Garand. Designed by Canadian-American John Garand and adopted in 1936, it differed from every other rifle discussed because it was not a bolt-action design. It was a semi-automatic rifle that replaced the five-shot M1903 Springfield, giving a single infantryman firepower comparable to three men with the older bolt-action model.
Over 5. 4 million M1s were produced until 1957. It used an eight-round en-bloc clip of . 30-06 ammunition and a gas-operated rotating bolt mechanism.
The M1’s higher rate of fire set it apart from German and Japanese rifles, and it remains in ceremonial military service today. With its bayonet, the M1 cost about $36 in 1945, which equals $666 in 2026 dollars. The comparison highlights a stark practical reality: for every American Garand, the Soviet Union could manufacture seven Mosin-Nagant rifles for the same price.