How many Russian soldiers have died in Ukraine?

Read more of our recent coverage of the Ukraine war.

ESTIMATES FOR how many Russian soldiers have been sent to their deaths in Ukraine are hard to come by. One of the most comprehensive—by Mediazona and Meduza, two independent Russian media outlets—uses public obituaries and official inheritance records to create an estimated death toll. The last time The Economist reported on their study, in July 2023, the figure was between 40,000 and 55,000. It has kept climbing sharply. Our five charts below illustrate the latest findings, released on February 24th.