Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Italy fits inside Nigeria 3.1 times.
Italy: 302,070 km² (2023) · Nigeria: 923,770 km² (2023)
How much coast is there?
Italy’s coastline is 8.9 times as long as Nigeria’s.
Italy: 7,600 km (2026 edition) · Nigeria: 853 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Italy’s highest peak towers 2,329 m above Nigeria’s.
Italy: 4,748 m (2026 edition) · Nigeria: 2,419 m (2026 edition)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Nigeria has 4 times as many people as Italy.
Italy: 58.9 million (2025) · Nigeria: 238 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Nigeria is 31% more densely populated than Italy.
Italy: 199 per km² (2025) · Nigeria: 261 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Men in Italy are 2.9 cm taller than in Nigeria.
Italy: 174.4 cm (2019) · Nigeria: 171.6 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Italy are 3.7 cm taller than in Nigeria.
Italy: 161.8 cm (2019) · Nigeria: 158.1 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Italy is 30 years older than in Nigeria.
Italy: 47.5 years (2023) · Nigeria: 17.8 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Nigeria have 3.2 more children on average than in Italy.
Italy: 1.18 children per woman (2024) · Nigeria: 4.38 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
25% of people in Italy are 65 or older, versus 3.1% in Nigeria.
Italy: 25.1% (2025) · Nigeria: 3.1% (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Italy has produced 3.4 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Nigeria 0.0.
Italy: 3.4 (2025) · Nigeria: 0 (2025)
How many official languages?
Italy and Nigeria are practically level.
Italy: 1 (2026) · Nigeria: 1 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Italy’s economy is 8.8 times the size of Nigeria’s.
Italy: $2.55 trillion (2025) · Nigeria: $291 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Italy produces 6.6 times as much per person as Nigeria.
Italy: Int$62,803 (2025) · Nigeria: Int$9,532 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Italy than in Nigeria (Gini 0.4 points higher).
Italy: 34.3 (2023) · Nigeria: 33.9 (2022)
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 6.4% in Italy, versus 3.1% in Nigeria.
Italy: 6.4% (2025) · Nigeria: 3.1% (2025)
How much goes to the military?
Italy spends 1.6% of its GDP on the military, Nigeria 0.6%.
Italy: 1.6% (2024) · Nigeria: 0.6% (2024)
How expensive is it?
Italy’s price level (US = 100) is 5.4× Nigeria’s.
Italy: 69% (2025) · Nigeria: 13% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Italy spends 51 times as much on health per person as Nigeria.
Italy: $3,398 (2024) · Nigeria: $67 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Italy live 29 years longer than in Nigeria.
Italy: 84 years (2024) · Nigeria: 54.6 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Nigeria is 30 times as likely to die before turning one as in Italy.
Italy: 2.3 per 1,000 (2024) · Nigeria: 69.8 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Italy has 11 times as many doctors per person as Nigeria.
Italy: 4.2 per 1,000 (2022) · Nigeria: 0.4 per 1,000 (2023)
How common is obesity?
18% of adults in Italy are obese, versus 12% in Nigeria.
Italy: 17.9% (2024) · Nigeria: 12.1% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
22% of adults in Italy smoke, versus 3.1% in Nigeria.
Italy: 22.4% (2024) · Nigeria: 3.1% (2024)
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Italy rate their lives 1.79 points higher than in Nigeria.
Italy: 6.57 (2025) · Nigeria: 4.79 (2025)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Italy drink 4.1 times as much alcohol as in Nigeria.
Italy: 8.4 litres (2023) · Nigeria: 2 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Italy has 10 times as much meat per person as Nigeria.
Italy: 71.2 kg (2023) · Nigeria: 7.1 kg (2023)
How much food is there per day?
Italy has 1,283 kcal more food per person per day than Nigeria.
Italy: 3,753 kcal (2023) · Nigeria: 2,470 kcal (2023)
How long do people work?
Workers in Nigeria put in 360 more hours a year than in Italy.
Italy: 1,701 hours (2023) · Nigeria: 2,062 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Italy went to school 3.2 years longer than in Nigeria.
Italy: 10.8 years (2023) · Nigeria: 7.6 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Italy welcomed 423 times as many tourists per resident as Nigeria (2019).
Italy: 0.98 (2024) · Nigeria: 0 (2024)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
89% of people in Italy are online, versus 41% in Nigeria.
Italy: 89% (2024) · Nigeria: 41% (2024)
Who has electricity at home?
100% of people in Italy have electricity, versus 63% in Nigeria.
Italy: 100% (2024) · Nigeria: 62.5% (2024)
How many live in cities?
70% of people in Italy live in cities, versus 64% in Nigeria.
Italy: 70% (2025) · Nigeria: 64% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Italy has 133 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Nigeria 71.
Italy: 133 (2024) · Nigeria: 71 (2024)
How much railway is there?
Italy’s railway network is 4.9 times as long as Nigeria’s.
Italy: 17,305 km (2021) · Nigeria: 3,528 km (2015)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Italy fly 16 times as many passengers per resident as those from Nigeria.
Italy: 0.34 (2023) · Nigeria: 0.02 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 33% of Italy, but only 23% of Nigeria.
Italy: 32.9% (2023) · Nigeria: 23.2% (2023)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Italy emits 8.7 times as much CO₂ as someone in Nigeria.
Italy: 5.1 t (2024) · Nigeria: 0.6 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
49% of Italy’s electricity is renewable, versus 31% in Nigeria.
Italy: 48.8% (2025) · Nigeria: 31.3% (2025)
How clean is the air?
The air in Nigeria carries 3.3 times as much fine dust as in Italy.
Italy: 15.2 µg/m³ (2024) · Nigeria: 50 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
You are 28 times as likely to be murdered in Nigeria as in Italy.
Italy: 0.6 per 100k (2023) · Nigeria: 15.7 per 100k (2023)
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Nigeria are 3.4 times as deadly as in Italy.
Italy: 5 per 100k (2021) · Nigeria: 17.2 per 100k (2021)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Nigeria is on average 13.5 °C warmer than Italy.
Italy: 13.9°C (2016–2025 avg) · Nigeria: 27.4°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Nigeria gets 1% more rain than Italy.
Italy: 1,030 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Nigeria: 1,044 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Quick answers
Is Italy bigger than Nigeria?
Nigeria is larger. Italy fits inside Nigeria 3.1 times.
Which has more people, Italy or Nigeria?
Nigeria has 4 times as many people as Italy (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Italy or Nigeria?
People in Italy live 29 years longer than in Nigeria. Life expectancy at birth is 84.0 years in Italy and 54.6 in Nigeria.
Are people taller in Italy or Nigeria?
Men in Italy are 2.9 cm taller than in Nigeria (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
