Nigeria vs Venezuela
Nigeria and Venezuela are almost exactly the same size.
NigeriaVenezuelaNigeria moved onto Venezuela · Equal-area projection
1.01×
Nigeria is 1.01× the area of Venezuela.
 Nigeria |  Venezuela | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaAbout the same area | 923,768 km²#31 of 194 | 912,050 km²#32 of 194 |
| Coastline | Has a coast | Has a coast |
| Land neighbours | 4 | 3 |
| People | ||
| PopulationNigeria: 8.33× the population | 237,527,782#6 of 194 · 2025 | 28,516,896#53 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityNigeria: 8.22× the density | 257 / km²#38 of 194 | 31 / km²#148 of 194 |
| Urban populationVenezuela: 1.4× the urban share | 64%#93 of 192 · 2025 | 89%#20 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateNigeria: 2.11× the births per woman | 4.38 per woman#15 of 192 · 2024 | 2.08 per woman#94 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthNigeria: 1.67 points higher | +2.06%#44 of 192 · 2025 | +0.39%#138 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateNigeria: 2.14× the birth rate | 32.5 per 1,000#20 of 192 · 2024 | 15.2 per 1,000#100 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateNigeria: 1.51× the death rate | 11.6 per 1,000#20 of 192 · 2024 | 7.7 per 1,000#79 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Nigeria: 15.6 points higher | 40.5%#19 of 192 · 2025 | 24.9%#91 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Venezuela: 6.9 points higher | 3.1%#166 of 192 · 2025 | 10.0%#78 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationNigeria: 3.4 per 1,000 higher | −0.1 per 1,000#78 of 192 · 2025 | −3.5 per 1,000#164 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadVenezuela: 7.27× the refugees for its size | 2.01 per 1,000#43 of 190 · 2025 | 14.62 per 1,000#14 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyVenezuela: 18.1 years longer | 54.6 years#192 of 192 · 2024 | 72.7 years#106 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityNigeria: 3.29× the infant mortality | 69.8 per 1,000 births#2 of 191 · 2024 | 21.2 per 1,000 births#66 of 191 · 2024 |
| Doctors | 0.38 per 1,000#133 of 178 · 2023 | — |
| Human Development IndexVenezuela: 0.149 higher | 0.560#161 of 190 · 2023 | 0.709#120 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaVenezuela: 2.84× the income per person | $1,360#159 of 185 · 2025 | $3,860#127 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPNigeria: 2.92× the economy | $290.79B2025 | $99.66B2025 |
| Income group | Lower-middle income | Lower-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | $9,532#128 of 184 · 2025 | — |
| GDP growthNigeria: 2.4 points higher | +4.0%#69 of 187 · 2025 | +1.6%#143 of 187 · 2025 |
| Inflation | +23.0%#10 of 176 · 2025 | — |
| UnemploymentVenezuela: 1.71× the unemployment | 3.1%#137 of 178 · 2025 | 5.3%#83 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 41.8%#17 of 149 · 2022 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 33.9#80 of 149 · 2022 | — |
| Jobs in agricultureNigeria: 24.6 points higher | 33.5% of jobs#52 of 178 · 2025 | 8.9% of jobs#115 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryNigeria: 0.2 points higher | 17.0% of jobs#113 of 178 · 2025 | 16.8% of jobs#118 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesVenezuela: 24.9 points higher | 49.5% of jobs#122 of 178 · 2025 | 74.4% of jobs#31 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentNigeria: 1.9 points higher | 1.4% of GDP#112 of 184 · 2025 | -0.5% of GDP#171 of 184 · 2025 |
| Exports | — | 14.9% of GDP#150 of 168 · 2025 |
| Military spending | 0.9% of GDP#119 of 155 · 2025 | — |
| Internet usersVenezuela: 1.86× the share online | 41%#153 of 184 · 2024 | 77%#106 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsAbout as many mobile subscriptions | 71 per 100#157 of 191 · 2024 | 71 per 100#157 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaVenezuela: 2.83× the forest share | 19% of land#122 of 192 · 2024 | 53% of land#41 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personVenezuela: 5.95× the CO₂ per person | 0.57 t a year#146 of 185 · 2024 | 3.39 t a year#78 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyNigeria: 46.6 points higher | 80.3%#16 of 190 · 2021 | 33.7%#74 of 190 · 2021 |
| Access to electricityVenezuela: 37.5 points higher | 62.5%#160 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Nigeria: 3.42× the air pollution | 65.7 µg/m³#4 of 191 · 2023 | 19.2 µg/m³#90 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landVenezuela: 42.9 points higher | 13.9% of land#124 of 191 · 2025 | 56.8% of land#2 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landNigeria: 37.9 points higher | 40.8% of land#13 of 190 · 2024 | 2.9% of land#150 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressNigeria: 1.29× the water stress | 9.7%#92 of 176 · 2022 | 7.5%#104 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationVenezuela: 1.78× the rain and snow | 1,150 mm#80 of 180 · 2022 | 2,044 mm#30 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityVenezuela: 0.23 higher | −1.74#179 of 193 · 2025 | −1.51#172 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionNigeria: 0.48 higher | −1.07#158 of 193 · 2025 | −1.55#186 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateNigeria: 1.25× the homicide rate | 15.7 per 100,000#20 of 146 · 2023 | 12.6 per 100,000#22 of 146 · 2022 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Presidential republicfederal presidential republic | Presidential republicfederal presidential republic |
| Member of | OPEC | OPEC |
| Capital | Abuja | Caracas |
| Currency | Nigerian naira (NGN) | Sovereign bolivar (VES) |
| Official languages | English | Spanish, Venezuelan Sign Language |
| Traffic drives | On the right | On the right |
| Time zone | UTC+1 | UTC−4 |
| Calling code | +234 | +58 |
| Region | Western Africa, Africa | South America |
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; Venezuela at 7° N is stretched to 1.02×. 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 Venezuela?
- Yes. Nigeria and Venezuela are almost exactly the same size. Nigeria covers 923,768 km² and Venezuela covers 912,050 km².
- How many times does Venezuela fit into Nigeria?
- About 1.0 times: Nigeria has 1.01× the area of Venezuela.
- Why do Nigeria and Venezuela 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 Venezuela about 1.02×. 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 Venezuela?
- Nigeria: 237,527,782 people against 28,516,896. Density: Nigeria 257 per km², Venezuela 31 per km².
- Which is richer, Nigeria or Venezuela?
- By gross national income per person, Venezuela: $3,860 against $1,360 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 2.84× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Nigeria or Venezuela?
- In Venezuela: life expectancy at birth is 72.7 years, against 54.6 — 18.1 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Nigeria and Venezuela have?
- The same form of government, by constitution: presidential republic (CIA World Factbook).