Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Benin fits inside Nigeria 8 times
Benin: 114,760 km² (2024) · Nigeria: 923,768 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
Nigeria’s coastline is 7 times as long as Benin’s
Benin: 121 km (2026 edition) · Nigeria: 853 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Nigeria’s highest peak towers 1,744 m above Benin’s
Benin: 675 m (2026 edition) · Nigeria: 2,419 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 77% of Nigeria, versus 43% of Benin
Benin: 43.1% (2024) · Nigeria: 77.1% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Nigeria has 16 times as many people as Benin
Benin: 14.8 million (2025) · Nigeria: 238 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Nigeria is 2 times as densely populated as Benin
Benin: 131 per km² (2025) · Nigeria: 261 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Nigeria are 3.1 cm taller than in Benin
Benin: 168.4 cm (2019) · Nigeria: 171.6 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Benin and Nigeria are practically level
Benin: 158.4 cm (2019) · Nigeria: 158.1 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
Benin and Nigeria are practically level
Benin: 17.8 years (2023) · Nigeria: 17.8 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Benin have 0.1 more children on average than in Nigeria
Benin: 4.48 children per woman (2024) · Nigeria: 4.38 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
Benin and Nigeria are practically level
Benin: 3.2% (2025) · Nigeria: 3.1% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
Benin hosts 2.2 times as many refugees per resident as Nigeria
Benin: 1.1 per 1,000 (2025) · Nigeria: 0.5 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Nigeria has produced 0.0 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Benin none
Benin: 0 (2026) · Nigeria: 0.042 (2026)
How many official languages?
Benin and Nigeria are practically level
Benin: 1 (2026) · Nigeria: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Nigeria’s economy is 12 times the size of Benin’s
Benin: $24.6 billion (2025) · Nigeria: $291 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Nigeria produces 2 times as much per person as Benin
Benin: Int$4,817 (2025) · Nigeria: Int$9,532 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Benin than in Nigeria (Gini 0.5 points higher)
Benin: 34.4 (2021) · Nigeria: 33.9 (2022)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
42% of people in Nigeria live on less than $3 a day, versus 27% in Benin
Benin: 27.2% (2021) · Nigeria: 41.8% (2022)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 3.1% in Nigeria, versus 1.6% in Benin
Benin: 1.6% (2025) · Nigeria: 3.1% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Nigeria and Benin are practically level
Benin: 0.9% (2025) · Nigeria: 0.9% (2025)
How expensive is it?
Benin’s price level (US = 100) is 2.7× Nigeria’s
Benin: 34% (2025) · Nigeria: 13% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Nigeria spends 44% more on health per person than Benin
Benin: $47 (2023) · Nigeria: $67 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Benin live 6.3 years longer than in Nigeria
Benin: 61 years (2024) · Nigeria: 54.6 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Nigeria is 54% more likely to die before turning one than in Benin
Benin: 45.2 per 1,000 (2024) · Nigeria: 69.8 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Nigeria has 76% more doctors per person than Benin
Benin: 0.2 per 1,000 (2023) · Nigeria: 0.4 per 1,000 (2023)
How many hospital beds are there?
Benin: 0.4 per 1,000 (2021) · Nigeria: no data
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in Benin is 2.5 times that in Nigeria
Benin: 16.2 per 100k (2023) · Nigeria: 6.5 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
12% of adults in Nigeria are obese, versus 11% in Benin
Benin: 10.9% (2024) · Nigeria: 12.1% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
7.4% of adults in Benin smoke, versus 3.1% in Nigeria
Benin: 7.4% (2024) · Nigeria: 3.1% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Nigeria rate their lives 0.40 points higher than in Benin
Benin: 4.39 (2025) · Nigeria: 4.79 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Benin drink 2 times as much alcohol as in Nigeria
Benin: 4.1 litres (2023) · Nigeria: 2 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Benin has 2.4 times as much meat per person as Nigeria
Benin: 17.3 kg (2022) · Nigeria: 7.1 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Benin has 233 kcal more food per person per day than Nigeria
Benin: 2,703 kcal (2022) · Nigeria: 2,470 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Benin: no data · Nigeria: 2,062 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Nigeria went to school 4.4 years longer than in Benin
Benin: 3.2 years (2023) · Nigeria: 7.6 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Benin welcomed 10 times as many tourists per resident as Nigeria (2019)
Benin: 0.02 (2019) · Nigeria: 0.0023 (2024)
How many World Heritage sites?
Benin has 1 more World Heritage site than Nigeria (3 against 2)
Benin: 3 (2026) · Nigeria: 2 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
Nigeria has won 27 Olympic medals, Benin none
Benin: 0 (2026 edition) · Nigeria: 27 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
41% of people in Nigeria are online, versus 34% in Benin
Benin: 34% (2024) · Nigeria: 41% (2024)
How fast is home internet?
Home internet in Benin is 35% faster than in Nigeria
Benin: 59 Mbps (2026) · Nigeria: 44 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
63% of people in Nigeria have electricity, versus 59% in Benin
Benin: 59% (2024) · Nigeria: 62.5% (2024)
How many live in cities?
64% of people in Nigeria live in cities, versus 53% in Benin
Benin: 53% (2025) · Nigeria: 64% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Benin has 126 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Nigeria 71
Benin: 126 (2024) · Nigeria: 71 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Nigeria’s railway network is 8.1 times as long as Benin’s
Benin: 438 km (2014) · Nigeria: 3,528 km (2015)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Nigeria fly 366 times as many passengers per resident as those from Benin
Benin: 0.000061 (2016) · Nigeria: 0.02 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 28% of Benin, but only 19% of Nigeria
Benin: 28.1% (2024) · Nigeria: 18.9% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Nigeria emits 39% more CO₂ than someone in Benin
Benin: 0.4 t (2024) · Nigeria: 0.6 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
31% of Nigeria’s electricity is renewable, versus 4.0% in Benin
Benin: 4% (2024) · Nigeria: 31.3% (2025)
How clean is the air?
The air in Nigeria carries 42% more fine dust than in Benin
Benin: 35.3 µg/m³ (2024) · Nigeria: 50 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
Benin: no data · Nigeria: 15.7 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Benin are 54% deadlier than in Nigeria
Benin: 38.1 per 100k (2023) · Nigeria: 24.7 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Benin is on average 0.6 °C warmer than Nigeria
Benin: 28°C (2016–2025 avg) · Nigeria: 27.4°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Nigeria gets 3% more rain than Benin
Benin: 1,014 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Nigeria: 1,044 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Between them
People, goods and passports that cross from one to the other
Quick answers
Is Benin bigger than Nigeria?
Nigeria is larger. Benin fits inside Nigeria 8 times.
Which has more people, Benin or Nigeria?
Nigeria has 16 times as many people as Benin (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Benin or Nigeria?
People in Benin live 6.3 years longer than in Nigeria. Life expectancy at birth is 61.0 years in Benin and 54.6 in Nigeria.
Are people taller in Benin or Nigeria?
Men in Nigeria are 3.1 cm taller than in Benin (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
