Most countries have a number of different categories of firefighter with the main two groups consisting of professional firefighters in the public sector and voluntary firefighters. Other smaller categories include military firefighters and private sector firefighters.
The latest numbers are given in the table below, concentrating on public sector professional and voluntary firefighters. Further details and a breakdown of the "other" category are given in the notes below the table.
| Country | Professional | Voluntary | Other |
| Belgium | 5250 | 16690 |
| Croatia | 2400 | 60000 | 1745 |
| Czech Republic | 10797 | 350000 | 2828 |
| Denmark | 1217 | 2952 | 4469 |
| Estonia | 1600 | 100 |
| Finland | 2940 | 19400 | 690 |
| France | 42000 | 200000 | 2000 |
| Italy | 26000 | 7000 | |
| Netherlands | 4000 | 21000 | 1500 |
| Slovakia | 4296 | 10000 | 1546 |
| Spain | 19886 | 3437 | 3745 |
Notes
Croatia - 60000 voluntary firefighter members but only 5000 operational. The other firefighters consist of military (170), seasonal (1000), industrial (500) and state (75)
Czech Republic - others includes 483 military firefighters + 2345 company firefighters
Denmark - 1217 public firefighters include 172 in ambulances; 2952 voluntary public sector include 1159 without pay and 1793 with low payment; others = military (694); employed by Falck co. (3221) and non-public sector voluntary without pay 1554
Finland - others include military (50); airports (400) and between 200 and 300 in nuclear plants and docks
France - others = military
Netherlands - 1500 others include 500 military
Slovakia - others = private
Spain - others: 2260 for seasonal fires; 1390 in airports; 95 military
Last updated: 20.8.10
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