Nigeria vs Tanzania
Tanzania and Nigeria are almost exactly the same size.
NigeriaTanzaniaNigeria moved onto Tanzania · Equal-area projection
0.98×
Nigeria is 0.98× the area of Tanzania. Put the other way, Tanzania is 1.03× the size of Nigeria.
 Nigeria |  Tanzania | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaAbout the same area | 923,768 km²#31 of 194 | 947,303 km²#30 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 4 | 8 |
| People | ||
| PopulationNigeria: 3.37× the population | 237,527,782#6 of 194 · 2025 | 70,545,865#21 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityNigeria: 3.45× the density | 257 / km²#38 of 194 | 74 / km²#111 of 194 |
| Urban populationNigeria: 1.73× the urban share | 64%#93 of 192 · 2025 | 37%#156 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateTanzania: 1.04× the births per woman | 4.38 per woman#15 of 192 · 2024 | 4.54 per woman#12 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthTanzania: 0.80 points higher | +2.06%#44 of 192 · 2025 | +2.86%#16 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateTanzania: 1.07× the birth rate | 32.5 per 1,000#20 of 192 · 2024 | 34.8 per 1,000#10 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateNigeria: 2.04× the death rate | 11.6 per 1,000#20 of 192 · 2024 | 5.7 per 1,000#148 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Tanzania: 1.8 points higher | 40.5%#19 of 192 · 2025 | 42.3%#13 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Nigeria: 0.1 points higher | 3.1%#166 of 192 · 2025 | 3.0%#171 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationNigeria: 0.1 per 1,000 higher | −0.1 per 1,000#78 of 192 · 2025 | −0.2 per 1,000#84 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadNigeria: 100× the refugees for its size | 2.01 per 1,000#43 of 190 · 2025 | 0.02 per 1,000#145 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyTanzania: 12.6 years longer | 54.6 years#192 of 192 · 2024 | 67.2 years#151 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityNigeria: 2.43× the infant mortality | 69.8 per 1,000 births#2 of 191 · 2024 | 28.7 per 1,000 births#50 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsNigeria: 2.92× the doctors per person | 0.38 per 1,000#133 of 178 · 2023 | 0.13 per 1,000#164 of 178 · 2022 |
| University enrolment | — | 4.0%#143 of 145 · 2024 |
| Human Development IndexNigeria: 0.005 higher | 0.560#161 of 190 · 2023 | 0.555#162 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaNigeria: 1.07× the income per person | $1,360#159 of 185 · 2025 | $1,270#163 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPNigeria: 3.23× the economy | $290.79B2025 | $90.14B2025 |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | Lower-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Nigeria: 2.13× the output per person | $9,532#128 of 184 · 2025 | $4,471#157 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthTanzania: 1.9 points higher | +4.0%#69 of 187 · 2025 | +5.9%#33 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationNigeria: 19.7 points higher | +23.0%#10 of 176 · 2025 | +3.3%#81 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentNigeria: 1.94× the unemployment | 3.1%#137 of 178 · 2025 | 1.6%#165 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme povertyTanzania: 1.23× the share in extreme poverty | 41.8%#17 of 149 · 2022 | 51.3%#11 of 149 · 2018 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Tanzania: 6.6 higher | 33.9#80 of 149 · 2022 | 40.5#35 of 149 · 2018 |
| Jobs in agricultureTanzania: 31.1 points higher | 33.5% of jobs#52 of 178 · 2025 | 64.6% of jobs#10 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryNigeria: 8.9 points higher | 17.0% of jobs#113 of 178 · 2025 | 8.1% of jobs#164 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesNigeria: 22.2 points higher | 49.5% of jobs#122 of 178 · 2025 | 27.3% of jobs#170 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentTanzania: 0.5 points higher | 1.4% of GDP#112 of 184 · 2025 | 1.9% of GDP#96 of 184 · 2025 |
| Exports | — | 19.0% of GDP#136 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spendingTanzania: 1.27× the military spending | 0.9% of GDP#119 of 155 · 2025 | 1.2% of GDP#104 of 155 · 2025 |
| Internet usersNigeria: 1.32× the share online | 41%#153 of 184 · 2024 | 31%#165 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsTanzania: 1.79× the mobile subscriptions | 71 per 100#157 of 191 · 2024 | 127 per 100#59 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaTanzania: 2.62× the forest share | 19% of land#122 of 192 · 2024 | 50% of land#51 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personNigeria: 1.84× the CO₂ per person | 0.57 t a year#146 of 185 · 2024 | 0.31 t a year#159 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyNigeria: 2.0 points higher | 80.3%#16 of 190 · 2021 | 78.3%#20 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityNigeria: 10.1 points higher | 62.5%#160 of 192 · 2024 | 52.4%#176 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Nigeria: 3.25× the air pollution | 65.7 µg/m³#4 of 191 · 2023 | 20.2 µg/m³#80 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landTanzania: 26.0 points higher | 13.9% of land#124 of 191 · 2025 | 39.9% of land#9 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landNigeria: 25.3 points higher | 40.8% of land#13 of 190 · 2024 | 15.5% of land#73 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressTanzania: 1.34× the water stress | 9.7%#92 of 176 · 2022 | 13.0%#79 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationNigeria: 1.07× the rain and snow | 1,150 mm#80 of 180 · 2022 | 1,071 mm#87 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityTanzania: 1.26 higher | −1.74#179 of 193 · 2025 | −0.48#137 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionTanzania: 0.74 higher | −1.07#158 of 193 · 2025 | −0.33#105 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateNigeria: 4.24× the homicide rate | 15.7 per 100,000#20 of 146 · 2023 | 3.7 per 100,000#59 of 146 · 2020 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republicfederal presidential republic | Presidential republic |
| Member of | OPEC | — |
| Capital | Abuja | Dodoma |
| Currency | Nigerian naira (NGN) | Tanzanian shilling (TZS) |
| Official languages | English | English, Swahili |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC+1 | UTC+3 |
| Calling code | +234 | +255 |
| Region | Western Africa, Africa | Eastern Africa, Africa |
Area: Wikidata. Population, income, health, economy, environment and governance: World Bank. Human Development Index: UNDP. Government: CIA World Factbook. Ranks among the 194 independent states. All sources
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Nigeria sits at about 10° N and is stretched to 1.03× its true area; Tanzania at 6° S is stretched to 1.01×. Here the two are distorted about the same amount, so Mercator gets this pair roughly right. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Nigeria bigger than Tanzania?
- No. Nigeria and Tanzania are almost exactly the same size. Nigeria covers 923,768 km² and Tanzania covers 947,303 km².
- How many times does Nigeria fit into Tanzania?
- About 1.0 times: Tanzania has 1.03× the area of Nigeria.
- Why do Nigeria and Tanzania look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Nigeria is drawn about 1.03× its true area there and Tanzania about 1.01×. For this pair the distortion is similar, so Mercator gets the comparison roughly right. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Nigeria or Tanzania?
- Nigeria: 237,527,782 people against 70,545,865. Density: Nigeria 257 per km², Tanzania 74 per km².
- Which is richer, Nigeria or Tanzania?
- By gross national income per person, Nigeria: $1,360 against $1,270 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 1.07× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Nigeria or Tanzania?
- In Tanzania: life expectancy at birth is 67.2 years, against 54.6 — 12.6 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Nigeria and Tanzania have?
- The same form of government, by constitution: presidential republic (CIA World Factbook).