Pentagon Spent Approximately $40 Billion on War in Iran, CNN Reports
Preliminary CSIS data cited by CNN shows the war in Iran cost the Pentagon about $40 billion, excluding operational expenses. The conflict also drove up gas prices and accelerated U.S. inflation.
According to preliminary data from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), cited by CNN, the Pentagon has spent approximately $40 billion on the war in Iran. This figure includes costs for ammunition, destroyed equipment, and damage to military bases, but excludes operational expenses already budgeted in the Department of Defense's fiscal year 2026 budget, which exceeds $1 trillion.
Mark Cancian, a senior adviser at CSIS, said that other U.S. agencies – such as the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Veterans Affairs – incurred an additional $1 billion in costs from the conflict.
The war also hit American consumers: the average national gas price rose from below $3 per gallon to well over $4 during most of the war. According to the Brown University energy cost tracking system, U.S. households paid on average $253 more than they would have without the war. Oil from the Middle East has not arrived for nearly four months. Kpler data shows the world lost 1.15 billion barrels of oil during the conflict. Annual inflation exceeded 4% for the first time in three years, driven by rising energy prices, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Prices are rising faster than the average wage growth over the past year – inflation eroded wage increases in April and May for the first time since 2023.
