How much is the war on Iran costing the US?

As the United States launches "Operation Epic Fury" against Iran, President Trump has vowed to sustain the military effort "for as long as necessary", sparking urgent debates over the financial burden on American taxpayers.

The conflict, which began with strikes on 28 February, has been targeting Iran's missile, naval, and nuclear capabilities, following failed diplomacy and the assassination of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei shortly after the initial barrages.

With at least six US servicemen killed so far and Trump refusing to rule out ground troops, the campaign's open-ended nature amplifies concerns about its escalating price tag.

The Department of Defense has allocated $1.42 trillion across its six sub-components for fiscal year 2026, providing the economic backdrop for this diversion of resources.

Pre-strike Pentagon build-up alone cost $630 million, according to a former senior Pentagon budget official, mostly for naval and air assets, absorbed within the existing budget.

Yet experts warn that the full scope of the military assault could easily surpass these figures.

Kent Smetters, director of the Penn Wharton Budget Model, projects total economic costs reaching as high as $210 billion if the conflict wraps up in under two months.

This includes $65 billion in direct military expenses for operations, equipment replenishment, and munitions, plus another $115 billion from broader fallout like trade disruptions, energy shocks, and financial instability.

Should the war drag on, these estimates could balloon further, potentially depleting US munitions stockpiles and straining an already growing federal deficit.

Daily operational costs paint an even starker picture for taxpayers.

The Institute for Policy Studies estimates expenses for major equipment at $59.39 million per day, with $30.679 million tied to naval deployments and $23.314 million to aircraft operations.

To put that in perspective, the organisation points out that the daily output matches what it would cost to cover Medicaid for more than four million Americans or SNAP food benefits for over 9.5 million people.

Anadolu Agency’s report on the opening 24 hours offers a snapshot of the intensity: US forces spent $779 million, or about 0.1% of the entire defence budget, in the initial offensive, which CENTCOM says involved over 20 weapons systems across air, sea and land, claiming to have hit more than 1,250 "targets" and destroying 11 Iranian ships.

Breaking down the cost of individual weapons used

The US has deployed two aircraft carriers, the USS Gerald R. Ford and USS Abraham Lincoln, each with strike groups costing roughly $6.5 million a day to operate, according to the Centre for New American Security.

Air power has been central to Washington’s stated aim of targeting Iran’s alleged nuclear capabilities, with F-15 Strike Eagle fighter jets extensively used.

Older models run about $31.1 million apiece, while newer ones approach $100 million, per Wall Street Journal reporting.

Three of the aircraft were lost in a friendly fire incident in Kuwait on Sunday.

B-2 stealth bombers flew four non-stop missions from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri, according to CENTCOM, dropping 2,000-pound munitions on nuclear and military sites at a cost exceeding $30.2 million, according to estimates from the US strikes on Iran in June 2025.

Additional assets like P-8 Maritime Patrol Aircraft, RC-135 reconnaissance planes, aerial refuelling tankers, and land-based HIMARS batteries have racked up to $423.57 million, per the Anadolu Agency report.

Missile defence systems have been crucial too, with Patriot interceptors and THAAD systems countering Iranian ballistic missiles. Security estimates put the cost of each interceptor at around $12.7 million.

The Navy unleashed around 200 Tomahawk cruise missiles, with latest versions at $2.5 million each, for a total munitions bill of $340.4 million, according to CENTCOM and analysts.

To counter the high cost of Tomahawks, the US introduced low-cost unmanned combat attack systems dubbed LUCAS for the first time. These drones run about $35,000 apiece, a fraction of a Tomahawk's price, though exact numbers deployed remain unclear.

This spending builds on prior commitments. Brown University's 2025 Cost of War report documents $21.7 billion in US military aid to Israel over the conflict's first two years since October 2023, excluding arms sales, Yemen operations, or earlier Iran actions.

Amid immense war costs, public support for the war effort is thin.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted in the first two days of the military campaign shows just 25% of Americans backing the strikes, even among Republicans.