Central Command Estimate Puts Cost of Iran War at $47.1 Billion

The war with Iran has cost the American military at least $47.1 billion as of mid-October, according to a new estimate from United States Central Command obtained by CBS News. The estimate was provided to lawmakers.

Replacing munitions that have been used makes up the largest share, about $29 billion, CBS reported. The military also counted $6.1 billion to replace lost equipment and about $11.9 billion in incremental costs such as support for service members. CNBC, citing a report by The Hill, said the new figure is roughly $3 billion above the previous one.

The total does not include damage to American bases in the Middle East, many of which were targeted by Iranian drones and missiles, CBS said. Three months ago, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told lawmakers the war had cost about $37.5 billion, also without counting base damage. The Congressional Budget Office said last month the conflict could cost $2 billion to $3 billion more for each month it continues, in part because of the need to replace interceptor missiles. CBS noted that exchanges of fire between the United States and Iran, common over the summer, have been quiet in recent weeks.

The war enters its ninth month this week, and its future is unclear. President Donald Trump said at a rally in Lubbock, Texas, on Tuesday night that the war will end “whenever I want it to end,” CNBC reported, adding that it “would be very quick, but we have to have an end properly,” with a “total statement” that Iran would never have a nuclear weapon. At a rally in Florida last week he said, “We may do another little Epic Fury, or they’ll agree,” according to CBS. CNBC cited a New York Times report that American and Israeli militaries have drawn up plans for a short but intensive round of strikes after the midterm elections.

The spending has become a question of military readiness as well as budgets. The Pentagon’s inspector general said last month the United States faces “strategic inventory shortfalls” because of the munitions expended in the war, and the Defense Department is working to speed up production, CBS reported. The administration has argued the military is not short of ammunition; Trump said in early September that the country has “virtually unlimited amounts of Mid to High Grade Ammunition.”

Congress has not yet acted on the money. The administration asked for tens of billions of dollars in supplemental military funding earlier this year, partly for the Iran war, and that request has not passed, CBS reported. Democrats have pressed Hegseth for a more detailed accounting of the war’s cost.

The costs also reach households. Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, estimated on Oct. 12 that the war had cost American families an average of about $2,000 so far, CNBC reported: roughly $1,100 from higher energy costs, $540 from higher interest costs and $360 from increased military spending. Those are one economist’s estimates, not official figures.

Supporters of the administration’s approach argue that weakening Iran’s ability to build a nuclear weapon is worth a high price. Critics, including Democrats seeking a fuller accounting, say Congress and the public should see the whole bill before the fighting resumes.