Land
Size, shape and altitude
How big is it, really?
Nigeria fits inside Sudan 2 times
Nigeria: 923,768 km² (2024) · Sudan: 1,878,000 km² (2024)
How much coast is there?
Nigeria and Sudan are nearly identical here
Nigeria: 853 km (2026 edition) · Sudan: 853 km (2026 edition)
How high can you climb?
Sudan’s highest peak towers 623 m above Nigeria’s
Nigeria: 2,419 m (2026 edition) · Sudan: 3,042 m (2026 edition)
How much of the land is farmed?
Farmland covers 77% of Nigeria, versus 60% of Sudan
Nigeria: 77.1% (2024) · Sudan: 60.3% (2024)
People
Who lives there, and how closely
How many people live there?
Nigeria has 4.6 times as many people as Sudan
Nigeria: 238 million (2025) · Sudan: 51.7 million (2025)
How crowded is it?
Nigeria is 9.4 times as densely populated as Sudan
Nigeria: 261 per km² (2025) · Sudan: 28 per km² (2025)
How tall are the men?
Sudan and Nigeria are practically level
Nigeria: 171.6 cm (2019) · Sudan: 172.1 cm (2019)
How tall are the women?
Women in Sudan are 2.2 cm taller than in Nigeria
Nigeria: 158.1 cm (2019) · Sudan: 160.4 cm (2019)
How old is the typical person?
The typical person in Sudan is 0.52 years older than in Nigeria
Nigeria: 17.8 years (2023) · Sudan: 18.3 years (2023)
How many children per woman?
Women in Nigeria have 0.1 more children on average than in Sudan
Nigeria: 4.38 children per woman (2024) · Sudan: 4.26 children per woman (2024)
How many people are 65 or older?
Sudan and Nigeria are practically level
Nigeria: 3.1% (2025) · Sudan: 3.4% (2025)
How many refugees does it host?
Sudan hosts 30 times as many refugees per resident as Nigeria
Nigeria: 0.5 per 1,000 (2025) · Sudan: 15.7 per 1,000 (2025)
How many Nobel laureates were born there?
Nigeria has produced 0.0 Nobel laureates per 10 million people, Sudan none
Nigeria: 0.042 (2026) · Sudan: 0 (2026)
How many official languages?
Sudan has 2 official languages, Nigeria 1
Nigeria: 1 (2026) · Sudan: 2 (2026)
Money
What an economy looks like per person
How big is the economy?
Nigeria’s economy is 4.8 times the size of Sudan’s
Nigeria: $291 billion (2025) · Sudan: $60.2 billion (2025)
How much is produced per person?
Nigeria produces 4.3 times as much per person as Sudan
Nigeria: Int$9,532 (2025) · Sudan: Int$2,192 (2025)
How evenly is income shared?
Income is more unequally shared in Sudan than in Nigeria (Gini 0.3 points higher)
Nigeria: 33.9 (2022) · Sudan: 34.2 (2014)
How many live on less than $3 a day?
Nigeria: 41.8% (2022) · Sudan: no data
How many people are looking for work?
Unemployment is 7.5% in Sudan, versus 3.1% in Nigeria
Nigeria: 3.1% (2025) · Sudan: 7.5% (2022)
How much goes to the military?
Sudan and Nigeria are practically level
Nigeria: 0.9% (2025) · Sudan: 0.9% (2021)
How much does the central government collect in tax?
Nigeria: no data · Sudan: 7.4% (2016)
How expensive is it?
Sudan’s price level (US = 100) is 4.1× Nigeria’s
Nigeria: 13% (2025) · Sudan: 53% (2025)
Health
Long lives, small beginnings
How much is spent on health?
Nigeria spends 3.2 times as much on health per person as Sudan
Nigeria: $67 (2023) · Sudan: $21 (2023)
How long do people live?
People in Sudan live 12 years longer than in Nigeria
Nigeria: 54.6 years (2024) · Sudan: 66.5 years (2024)
How many babies don’t reach their first birthday?
A baby in Nigeria is 63% more likely to die before turning one than in Sudan
Nigeria: 69.8 per 1,000 (2024) · Sudan: 42.9 per 1,000 (2024)
How many doctors are there?
Nigeria has 52% more doctors per person than Sudan
Nigeria: 0.4 per 1,000 (2023) · Sudan: 0.3 per 1,000 (2017)
How many hospital beds are there?
Nigeria: no data · Sudan: 0.7 per 1,000 (2021)
How common is suicide?
The suicide rate in Nigeria is 76% higher than in Sudan
Nigeria: 6.5 per 100k (2023) · Sudan: 3.7 per 100k (2023)
How common is obesity?
16% of adults in Sudan are obese, versus 12% in Nigeria
Nigeria: 12.1% (2024) · Sudan: 16.1% (2024)
How many adults smoke?
Nigeria: 3.1% (2024) · Sudan: no data
Everyday life
Plates, glasses and happiness
How do people rate their lives?
People in Nigeria rate their lives 0.65 points higher than in Sudan
Nigeria: 4.79 (2025) · Sudan: 4.14 (2017)
How much do people drink?
Adults in Nigeria drink 45% more alcohol than in Sudan
Nigeria: 2 litres (2023) · Sudan: 1.4 litres (2023)
How much meat is on the menu?
Sudan has 2.6 times as much meat per person as Nigeria
Nigeria: 7.1 kg (2023) · Sudan: 18.4 kg (2022)
How much food is there per day?
Sudan has 43 kcal more food per person per day than Nigeria
Nigeria: 2,470 kcal (2023) · Sudan: 2,513 kcal (2022)
How long do people work?
Workers in Sudan put in 596 more hours a year than in Nigeria
Nigeria: 2,062 hours (2023) · Sudan: 2,658 hours (2023)
How long do people go to school?
Adults in Nigeria went to school 3.6 years longer than in Sudan
Nigeria: 7.6 years (2023) · Sudan: 4 years (2023)
How many tourists visit?
Sudan welcomed 8.2 times as many tourists per resident as Nigeria (2019)
Nigeria: 0.0023 (2024) · Sudan: 0.02 (2018)
How many World Heritage sites?
Sudan has 1 more World Heritage site than Nigeria (3 against 2)
Nigeria: 2 (2026) · Sudan: 3 (2026)
How many Olympic medals has it won?
Nigeria has won 27 Olympic medals, Sudan 1
Nigeria: 27 (2026 edition) · Sudan: 1 (2026 edition)
Connected
Online, electrified, urban
How many people are online?
41% of people in Nigeria are online, versus 19% in Sudan
Nigeria: 41% (2024) · Sudan: 19% (2017)
How fast is home internet?
Home internet in Sudan is 81% faster than in Nigeria
Nigeria: 44 Mbps (2026) · Sudan: 79 Mbps (2026)
Who has electricity at home?
66% of people in Sudan have electricity, versus 63% in Nigeria
Nigeria: 62.5% (2024) · Sudan: 66% (2024)
How many live in cities?
64% of people in Nigeria live in cities, versus 35% in Sudan
Nigeria: 64% (2025) · Sudan: 35% (2025)
How many phones per person?
Nigeria has 71 mobile subscriptions per 100 people, Sudan 70
Nigeria: 71 (2024) · Sudan: 70 (2022)
How much railway is there?
Nigeria’s railway network is 28% longer than Sudan’s
Nigeria: 3,528 km (2015) · Sudan: 2,747 km (2020)
How much do they fly?
Airlines from Nigeria fly 26% more passengers per resident than those from Sudan
Nigeria: 0.02 (2023) · Sudan: 0.02 (2023)
Planet
Air, forests and energy
How much of the land is forest?
Forest covers 19% of Nigeria, but only 12% of Sudan
Nigeria: 18.9% (2024) · Sudan: 11.9% (2024)
How much CO₂ does each person emit?
The average person in Nigeria emits 65% more CO₂ than someone in Sudan
Nigeria: 0.6 t (2024) · Sudan: 0.4 t (2024)
How green is the power grid?
80% of Sudan’s electricity is renewable, versus 31% in Nigeria
Nigeria: 31.3% (2025) · Sudan: 79.7% (2024)
How clean is the air?
The air in Nigeria carries 74% more fine dust than in Sudan
Nigeria: 50 µg/m³ (2024) · Sudan: 28.8 µg/m³ (2024)
Safety
Measured risk, not vibes
How common is murder?
Nigeria: 15.7 per 100k (2023) · Sudan: no data
How dangerous are the roads?
Roads in Sudan are 14% deadlier than in Nigeria
Nigeria: 24.7 per 100k (2023) · Sudan: 28.2 per 100k (2023)
Climate
What the year feels like
How warm is it?
Sudan is on average 0.3 °C warmer than Nigeria
Nigeria: 27.4°C (2016–2025 avg) · Sudan: 27.7°C (2016–2025 avg)
How much rain falls?
Nigeria gets 6.1 times as much rain as Sudan
Nigeria: 1,044 mm (2016–2025 avg) · Sudan: 171 mm (2016–2025 avg)
Between them
People, goods and passports that cross from one to the other
Quick answers
Is Nigeria bigger than Sudan?
Sudan is larger. Nigeria fits inside Sudan 2 times.
Which has more people, Nigeria or Sudan?
Nigeria has 4.6 times as many people as Sudan (2025 estimates).
Where do people live longer, Nigeria or Sudan?
People in Sudan live 12 years longer than in Nigeria. Life expectancy at birth is 54.6 years in Nigeria and 66.5 in Sudan.
Are people taller in Nigeria or Sudan?
Sudan and Nigeria are practically level (NCD-RisC, cohort born 2019).
