The United States spent more than $11.3 billion during the first six days of its military operation against Iran, according to a closed-door Pentagon briefing provided to lawmakers. The figure, reported by The New York Times, highlights the significant and rapid consumption of weapons and resources in the conflict’s initial phase.
The briefing, which occurred on Tuesday, specified that the $11.3 billion estimate does not include many costs associated with the pre-strike military buildup. This indicates the total expenditure for the opening week is likely to be substantially higher. This high burn rate was further underscored by earlier reports that U.S. media cited defense officials as stating approximately $5.6 billion in munitions were expended during just the first 48 hours of fighting.
Independent analysis from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) provided a parallel estimate, calculating that the first 100 hours of “Operation Epic Fury” cost $3.7 billion—an average exceeding $891 million daily. The think tank noted that $3.5 billion of this initial sum represented expenses not previously accounted for in existing defense budgets.
A publicly available “Iran War Cost Tracker” website, which aggregates real-time data, displayed a tally of over $17 billion by Thursday morning, aligning with its calculated daily expenditure rate of $1 billion. The tracker’s operators caution that both official and public estimates are incomplete, as they exclude long-term financial obligations such as veterans’ healthcare and future equipment replacement, which will ultimately increase the conflict’s total price tag.
The revelations from the Pentagon briefing and independent trackers illustrate the immense fiscal pressure of sustained modern combat operations. The reported costs, driven by the intensive use of precision-guided munitions and naval and air power, have already surpassed initial public projections and are forcing a rapid reallocation of defense funds. This scale of spending within a single week is expected to intensify ongoing congressional debates over war funding authorizations and the broader budgetary impact of prolonged hostilities.
