The Year in Defense is a high quality, perfect-bound, glossy publication that is distributed on a name by name basis to the offices of military leaders, base commanders, procurement officers and program managers from within all of the armed services and Unified Combatant Commands of the Department of Defense and its combat support agencies such as the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA), Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), United States Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM), Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

Members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Senior Executive Service and commanding officers receive copies, as do CEOs, presidents, vice-presidents, directors of the top global defense contractors, plus members of Congress.