The war between the United States and Iran is not just claiming several lives. It is also burning through money at a speed that is hard to imagine. And if it continues the way US President Donald Trump has suggested, the final bill could be enormous, around Rs 1,88,70,00,00,00,000.
President Trump has said the war could last four to five weeks, maybe even longer. Kent Smetters, director of the Penn Wharton Budget Model and one of America’s leading fiscal experts, has estimated that if the war continues for about a month, the US could end up spending around $210 billion. That equals nearly Rs 18.87 lakh crore. Here’s the breakdown.
US-Israel war on Iran: The first 24 hours alone cost millions
according to estimates and data compiled by Anadolu, in just the first 24 hours of strikes on Iran, the United States spent about $779 million. That is nearly Rs 6,900 crore in a single day.
The US, Israel and Iran have shown no signs of stepping back. The situation has only grown more serious after the strikes that led to the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with other key figures. Before those strikes even began, the US had already spent heavily preparing for military action.
According to data from the Centre for New American Security, running a carrier strike group costs around $6.5 million a day — roughly Rs 58 crore daily. One of those massive ships is the USS Gerald R Ford, known as the world’s largest aircraft carrier. The United States deployed two aircraft carrier strike groups in the Middle East before launching the strikes.
Just the pre-strike build-up, moving aircraft, deploying naval vessels and activating assets in the region, is estimated to have cost about $630 million, which is nearly Rs 5,556 crore. And that was before the full fighting even began.
The spending did not begin this week. Since October 7, 2023, when Hamas attacked Israel, killing nearly 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages, the US has already poured billions into the region.
According to Brown University’s 2025 Costs of War report, the United States has given $21.7 billion in military aid to Israel since then. On top of that, it spent between $9.65 billion and $12.07 billion supporting operations in Yemen, Iran and across the wider Middle East.
When you add those figures together, the total comes to somewhere between $31.35 billion and $33.77 billion. In Indian currency, that is roughly between Rs 2.82 lakh crore and Rs 3.04 lakh crore.
When asked how long the war would last, Trump said, “We projected four to five weeks, but we have the capability to go far longer than that. We’ll do it… whatever the time is, it’s okay, whatever it takes,” he said. Writing on Truth Social, he said, “Their air defence, Air Force, Navy, and Leadership is gone. They want to talk. I said ‘Too Late!’”
On the other hand, Iran has made it clear it will not back down either. Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations, Ali Bahreini, said, “War has been imposed on the Iranian nation. Responsibility should be placed on the United States and Israel. We will continue our defence until this aggression stops.”
With both sides refusing to step aside, the cost, in lives and in money, is only expected to grow.