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World Measure
The population almanac240 countries · 31,365 cities · UN WPP 2024
City profile · Nigeria · Africa

Calabar

Cross River State · Nigeria
City population
540,000
#28
in Nigeria
#1
in Cross River State
#1,040
worldwide
AbujaCalabar
4.959, 8.327 · 465 km from Abuja
City population
540,000
Within the city boundary, not a metro area
Rank in Nigeria
#28
of 268 cities of 15,000+
World rank
#1,040
of 31,365 cities listed
Share of Nigeria
0.2%
of the national population

About Calabar

The largest city in Cross River State, this settlement of 540,000 sits 465 km from Abuja. Uyo, a city of 436,606, lies 45 km away, and Esuk Oron (112,033) is 19 km distant, making it part of a cluster of significant urban centres in the region.

This summary is AI-generated from the figures on this page. The figures themselves come from the sources cited beside each value.

Position in Nigeria
#28of 268
LargestSmallest
Position in Cross River State
#1of 5
LargestSmallest

Key Facts

Country
Nigeria
Region
Cross River State
Rank in region
#1of 5
Distance to capital
465 km
to Abuja
Elevation
37 m
Approximate — modelled, not surveyed
Time zone
Africa/Lagos
Coordinates
4.959, 8.327
Record updated
2026-04-14
Entry edited, not measured

City population, GeoNames. GeoNames publishes no year for its population figures, so “record updated” is when the entry was last edited — not the date the population was measured. Elevation is modelled from a digital elevation model rather than surveyed, so it is approximate.

Nearby Cities

All 268 in Nigeria

Closest listed cities by great-circle distance from the city centre.

19KMEsuk Oron112K people45KMUyo437K people47KMItu36K people57KMEket26K people72KMIkot Ekpene255K people

Compared with the World's Largest Cities

City-proper population against the fifteen largest cities in the dataset.

  1. Shanghai24.9M
  2. Beijing19M
  3. Shenzhen17.5M
  4. Guangzhou16.1M
  5. Kinshasa16M
  6. Istanbul15.7M
  7. Lagos15.4M
  8. Ho Chi Minh City14M
  9. Chengdu13.6M
  10. Lahore13M
  11. Mumbai12.7M
  12. São Paulo12.4M
  13. Mexico City12.3M
  14. Karachi11.6M
  15. Tianjin11.1M
  16. Calabar540K
City-proper figures only. Administrative boundaries differ between countries, so these are not directly comparable to metropolitan-area estimates.
Calabar compared with the fifteen largest cities
NameCity population
Shanghai24.9M
Beijing19M
Shenzhen17.5M
Guangzhou16.1M
Kinshasa16M
Istanbul15.7M
Lagos15.4M
Ho Chi Minh City14M
Chengdu13.6M
Lahore13M
Mumbai12.7M
São Paulo12.4M
Mexico City12.3M
Karachi11.6M
Tianjin11.1M
Calabar540K

Calabar Population FAQ

What is the population of Calabar?

Calabar has a city population of 540,000. That is the population within the city's own boundary, not its wider metropolitan area. City population, GeoNames.

Where is Calabar?

Calabar is in Cross River State, Nigeria, 465 km from the capital, Abuja. Its coordinates are 4.959, 8.327.

How big is Calabar compared with other cities in Nigeria?

It is the 28th largest of the 268 cities of 15,000 or more listed in Nigeria, holding 0.2% of the national population.

Explore

NigeriaAll 268 citiesCross River State5 cities in the regionCountry profileNigeria population & indicators