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Nigeria vs Tanzania

Flag of Nigeria

Nigeria

237,527,782#6 · +2.06%/yr
vs
Flag of Tanzania

Tanzania

70,545,865#21 · +2.86%/yr

Nigeria has 3.4× the population of Tanzania: 237,527,782 vs 70,545,865, a gap of 167.0 million. Tanzania is growing faster (+2.86% vs +2.06% a year), adding about 2,014,190 people a year against +4,898,468. Using continuous exponential growth from the stated base year, if these rates held, Tanzania would overtake Nigeria in about 153 years (from the 2025 population bases, around 2178) — a projection, not a forecast. Nigeria is 3.3× as densely populated (250.2 vs 75.2 people per km²). People in Tanzania live 12.6 years longer on average (67.2 vs 54.6).

Country/territory population bases: World Bank 2025 (Nigeria) and 2025 (Tanzania); growth years 2025 / 2025. Annual source values, not live counts; years may differ. Growth is national, not local.

Nigeria vs Tanzania — side by side

Flag of Nigeria NigeriaFlag of Tanzania Tanzania
Population237,527,782202570,545,8652025
Growth rate / yr+2.06%2025+2.86%2025
Births per 1,00032.5202434.82024
Deaths per 1,00011.620245.72024
Children per woman4.3820244.542024
Life expectancy54.6 yrs202467.2 yrs2024
Aged 0–1440.5%202542.3%2025
Aged 65+3.1%20253.0%2025
Density250.2 /km²202375.2 /km²2023
Area923,770 km²2023947,300 km²2023
Urban population63.8%202536.9%2025
Net migration / yr-15,2582025-12,7302025
GDP per capita$1,2242025$1,3192025
Country population rank (available records)#6#21
Base / world population (World Bank 2025)2.89%0.86%

Highlighted cell = the higher value (not "better"). Small print under each value is its own data year. Source: World Bank; country/territory population bases may have different years. These are not live counts.

Population since 1960

World Bank population history (not the separate UN WPP timeline). Nigeria: 5.3× from 1960 to 2025; Tanzania: 7.1× from 1960 to 2025. Left: absolute population. Right: each series indexed to its own first available year = 100; baseline years may differ.

062.9M125.9M188.8M251.8M1960197019801990200020102020NigeriaTanzania01893785667551960197019801990200020102020NigeriaTanzania

More comparisons

Region: Sub-Saharan Africa · rankings

Nigeria: Nigeria vs India, Nigeria vs China, Nigeria vs United States, Nigeria vs Indonesia, Nigeria vs Pakistan, Nigeria vs Brazil, Nigeria vs Bangladesh, Nigeria vs Russia.

Tanzania: Tanzania vs India, Tanzania vs China, Tanzania vs United States, Tanzania vs Indonesia, Tanzania vs Pakistan, Tanzania vs Nigeria, Tanzania vs Brazil, Tanzania vs Bangladesh.

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This page is a structured reference entry. Its sources, geographic definition and reference dates determine what the figures mean; it is not independent reporting about the causes of change. Read the accompanying explanation before comparing different places or vintages.

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Interpretation reviewed 12 October 2026. Underlying reference years are stated on the page; this is not a fresh census or dataset refresh.