Russian forces have suffered over 300,000 casualties so far in 2025 and over 1 million since the war began.
The Russian military is advancing across several axes of advance in Ukraine. Russia’s gains are not groundbreaking, but they are gains. Russian progress, however, does not come cheap. The Russian forces have suffered over 300,000 casualties so far in 2025 and over 1 million since the war began.
Russian Casualty Trends
According to the latest intelligence estimate by the British Ministry of Defence, the Russian forces have likely sustained approximately 332,000 casualties, including killed and wounded troops, so far in 2025. In comparison, Russia lost approximately 420,000 troops in 2024.
According to the Ukrainian General Staff, an average of 950 Russian troops have been killed and wounded every day. This marks an increase from the reported Russian losses in August, when the Russian military, paramilitary units, and pro-Russian separatist forces lost an average of 931 troops killed and wounded every day. Moreover, since March, the Russian average daily casualties have been steadily decreasing.
“Russia’s decreased monthly casualty rate has been sustained at the same time as Russian forces have maintained a high operational tempo across the frontline, and Russia has continued to make incremental territorial gains,” the British Ministry of Defence concluded in its latest intelligence assessment.
The most likely explanation for this decrease in casualties at a time of territorial progress is a change in tactics. It seems that Russian commanders are replacing mass infantry attacks with more sophisticated tactics that even verge on combined arms warfare.
However, October seems to be particularly deadly for the Russian forces thus far. The Russian military has lost an average of over 1,000 troops killed or wounded in seven days.
Interesting Casualty Facts
Overall, the Russian military, paramilitary units, and pro-Russian separatist forces have suffered approximately 1,118,000 losses since Russia launched the large-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
In over three years of fighting, the Russian forces have lost more than five times the initial invasion force, which numbered approximately 200,000 men. With a doubt, the Kremlin’s “special military operation,” at least in its initial conception, has failed. Russian military and intelligence officials expected a quick campaign that would last between three days and two weeks. Pre-invasion intelligence assessments estimated that the Ukrainian people would welcome the invading Russian troops with open arms and flowers. In reality, however, invading Russian troops were met with FIM-92 Stinger and FGM-148 Javelin missiles.
The month with the highest number of daily average losses is December 2024, when the Russian forces lost an average of 1,570 men killed and wounded every day. That is an absurdly high level of losses for a supposedly sophisticated military force. The month with the lowest losses is June 2022, when the Russian forces lost an average of 172 troops killed and wounded every day.
Overall, the Russian forces have lost an average of more than 1,000 men daily over the last 15 months. Moreover, in five out of those months, the Russian forces lost an average of over 1,300 troops. In comparison, a US Army or Marine Corps battalion has up to 1,000 men. Thus, the Russian military has been losing a battalion worth of troops every day for more than 15 months.
In addition, the Russian forces have lost an average of more than 800 men daily for 23 months.
About the Author: Stavros Atlamazoglou
Stavros Atlamazoglou is a seasoned defense journalist specializing in special operations and a Hellenic Army veteran (national service with the 575th Marine Battalion and Army HQ). He holds a BA from the Johns Hopkins University and an MA from the Johns Hopkins’ School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). His work has been featured in Business Insider, Sandboxx, and SOFREP.
Image: Anton Gvozdikov / Shutterstock.com
