Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Ghana fits inside Nigeria 3.9 times
Ghana: 238,539 km² (2024) · Nigeria: 923,768 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
Nigeria’s coastline is 58% longer than Ghana’s
Ghana: 539 km (2026 edition) · Nigeria: 853 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Nigeria’s highest peak towers 1,534 m above Ghana’s
Ghana: 885 m (2026 edition) · Nigeria: 2,419 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 77% of Nigeria, versus 55% of Ghana
Ghana: 55.4% (2024) · Nigeria: 77.1% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Nigeria has 6.8 times as many people as Ghana
Ghana: 35.1 million (2025) · Nigeria: 238 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Nigeria is 69% more densely populated than Ghana
Ghana: 154 per km² (2025) · Nigeria: 261 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Nigeria are 1.3 cm taller than in Ghana
Ghana: 170.3 cm (2019) · Nigeria: 171.6 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Ghana and Nigeria are practically level
Ghana: 158.9 cm (2019) · Nigeria: 158.1 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Ghana is 3.2 years older than in Nigeria
Ghana: 20.9 years (2023) · Nigeria: 17.8 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Nigeria have 1.0 more children on average than in Ghana
Ghana: 3.34 children per woman (2024) · Nigeria: 4.38 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
3.8% of people in Ghana are 65 or older, versus 3.1% in Nigeria
Ghana: 3.8% (2025) · Nigeria: 3.1% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
Ghana hosts 15% more refugees per resident than Nigeria
Ghana: 0.6 per 1,000 (2025) · Nigeria: 0.5 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Ghana has produced 0.3 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Nigeria 0.0
Ghana: 0.3 (2026) · Nigeria: 0.042 (2026)
How many official languages?
Ghana and Nigeria are practically level
Ghana: 1 (2026) · Nigeria: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Nigeria’s economy is 2.5 times the size of Ghana’s
Ghana: $114 billion (2025) · Nigeria: $291 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Nigeria produces 11% more per person than Ghana
Ghana: Int$8,610 (2025) · Nigeria: Int$9,532 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Ghana than in Nigeria (Gini 9.6 points higher)
Ghana: 43.5 (2016) · Nigeria: 33.9 (2022)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
Ghana: no data · Nigeria: 41.8% (2022)
How many people are looking for work?
Nigeria and Ghana are practically level
Ghana: 3% (2025) · Nigeria: 3.1% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Nigeria and Ghana are practically level
Ghana: 0.5% (2025) · Nigeria: 0.9% (2025)
How much does the central government collect in tax?
Ghana: 12.4% (2023) · Nigeria: no data
How expensive is it?
Ghana’s price level (US = 100) is 2.9× Nigeria’s
Ghana: 38% (2025) · Nigeria: 13% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Ghana spends 5% more on health per person than Nigeria
Ghana: $70 (2023) · Nigeria: $67 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Ghana live 11 years longer than in Nigeria
Ghana: 65.7 years (2024) · Nigeria: 54.6 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Nigeria is 2.5 times as likely to die before turning one as in Ghana
Ghana: 27.5 per 1,000 (2024) · Nigeria: 69.8 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Nigeria has 43% more doctors per person than Ghana
Ghana: 0.3 per 1,000 (2023) · Nigeria: 0.4 per 1,000 (2023)
How many hospital beds are there?
Ghana: 0.7 per 1,000 (2015) · Nigeria: no data
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in Ghana is 2.6 times that in Nigeria
Ghana: 17.2 per 100k (2023) · Nigeria: 6.5 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
14% of adults in Ghana are obese, versus 12% in Nigeria
Ghana: 13.8% (2024) · Nigeria: 12.1% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
Ghana and Nigeria are practically level
Ghana: 3.3% (2024) · Nigeria: 3.1% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Nigeria rate their lives 0.23 points higher than in Ghana
Ghana: 4.55 (2025) · Nigeria: 4.79 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Ghana drink 27% more alcohol than in Nigeria
Ghana: 2.6 litres (2023) · Nigeria: 2 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Ghana has 2.4 times as much meat per person as Nigeria
Ghana: 17.4 kg (2023) · Nigeria: 7.1 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Ghana has 655 kcal more food per person per day than Nigeria
Ghana: 3,125 kcal (2023) · Nigeria: 2,470 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in Nigeria put in 406 more hours a year than in Ghana
Ghana: 1,656 hours (2023) · Nigeria: 2,062 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Nigeria went to school 0.48 years longer than in Ghana
Ghana: 7.1 years (2023) · Nigeria: 7.6 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Ghana welcomed 12 times as many tourists per resident as Nigeria (2019)
Ghana: 0.03 (2022) · Nigeria: 0.0023 (2024)
How many World Heritage sites?
Ghana and Nigeria are practically level
Ghana: 2 (2026) · Nigeria: 2 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
Nigeria has won 27 Olympic medals, Ghana 5
Ghana: 5 (2026 edition) · Nigeria: 27 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
72% of people in Ghana are online, versus 41% in Nigeria
Ghana: 72% (2024) · Nigeria: 41% (2024)
How fast is home internet?
Home internet in Ghana is 2.1 times as fast as in Nigeria
Ghana: 92 Mbps (2026) · Nigeria: 44 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
92% of people in Ghana have electricity, versus 63% in Nigeria
Ghana: 91.9% (2024) · Nigeria: 62.5% (2024)
How many live in cities?
64% of people in Nigeria live in cities, versus 59% in Ghana
Ghana: 59% (2025) · Nigeria: 64% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Ghana has 114 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Nigeria 71
Ghana: 114 (2024) · Nigeria: 71 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Nigeria’s railway network is 3.7 times as long as Ghana’s
Ghana: 947 km (2022) · Nigeria: 3,528 km (2015)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Nigeria fly 77% more passengers per resident than those from Ghana
Ghana: 0.01 (2023) · Nigeria: 0.02 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 31% of Ghana, but only 19% of Nigeria
Ghana: 30.9% (2024) · Nigeria: 18.9% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Ghana emits 5% more CO₂ than someone in Nigeria
Ghana: 0.6 t (2024) · Nigeria: 0.6 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
36% of Ghana’s electricity is renewable, versus 31% in Nigeria
Ghana: 36.2% (2024) · Nigeria: 31.3% (2025)
How clean is the air?
The air in Nigeria carries 77% more fine dust than in Ghana
Ghana: 28.2 µg/m³ (2024) · Nigeria: 50 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 8.6 times as likely to be murdered in Nigeria as in Ghana
Ghana: 1.8 per 100k (2022) · Nigeria: 15.7 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Ghana are 2.2 times as deadly as in Nigeria
Ghana: 54.9 per 100k (2023) · Nigeria: 24.7 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Ghana is on average 0.5 °C warmer than Nigeria
Ghana: 27.9°C (2016–2025 avg) · Nigeria: 27.4°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Ghana gets 7% more rain than Nigeria
Ghana: 1,118 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 Ghana bigger than Nigeria?
Nigeria is larger. Ghana fits inside Nigeria 3.9 times.
Which has more people, Ghana or Nigeria?
Nigeria has 6.8 times as many people as Ghana (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Ghana or Nigeria?
People in Ghana live 11 years longer than in Nigeria. Life expectancy at birth is 65.7 years in Ghana and 54.6 in Nigeria.
Are people taller in Ghana or Nigeria?
Men in Nigeria are 1.3 cm taller than in Ghana (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
