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World Measure
Compare · Countries

🇨🇳 China vs 🇳🇬 Nigeria

Population difference
1,169,057,218
1.41B
China
237.5M
Nigeria
5.9×
China is larger by

35 indicators below, published by both countries and set side by side. They differ most on inflation rate, where Nigeria’s figure is 383.5× higher.

Indicators compared
35
Published by both countries
China
by population · Asia
Nigeria
by population · Africa

Side by Side

Each bar is scaled against the larger of the two values, so the gap is visible rather than only stated.

Population
China1,406,585,000
Nigeria237,527,782
Land Areakm²
China9,388,210 km²
Nigeria910,770 km²
Population Density/km²
China150/km²
Nigeria250/km²
Life Expectancyyears
China78.0 years
Nigeria54.6 years
GDP per Capita
China$13,862
Nigeria$1,224
Urban Population
China66.3%
Nigeria63.8%

Bars compare magnitude only. A larger value is not a better one — several of these indicators have no better direction, and for others the lower figure is the favourable one.

Every Shared Indicator

35 indicators published for both countries. Bold marks the larger of the two values — larger is not always better. Ranks are out of the countries that report each indicator.

Every indicator published for both China and Nigeria, side by side
IndicatorChinaNigeriaChina vs Nigeria
Population1,406,585,0002nd of 240237,527,7826th of 2405.9× higher
Annual Growth Rate−0.17%208th of 240+2.06%48th of 2402.23 points apart
Population Density/km²150/km²82nd of 240250/km²58th of 24040% lower
Land Areakm²9,388,210 km²2nd of 240910,770 km²30th of 2408,477,440 km² apart
Urban Population66.3%116th of 24063.8%128th of 2404% higher
GDP per Capita$13,862110th of 240$1,224215th of 240$12,638 apart
GDP Growth+5.0%54th of 210+4.0%78th of 21024% higher
Life Expectancyyears78.0 years83rd of 24054.6 years240th of 24043% higher
Fertility Ratebirths per woman1.01 births per woman230th of 2404.38 births per woman15th of 2404.3× lower
Birth Rateper 1,0006.8 per 1,000202nd of 21332.5 per 1,00020th of 2134.8× lower
Death Rateper 1,0007.8 per 1,00087th of 21311.6 per 1,00020th of 21333% lower
Infant Mortalityper 1,000 live births4.1 per 1,000 live births39th of 19469.8 per 1,000 live births193rd of 19465.7 per 1,000 live births apart
Unemployment Rate4.6%76th of 1863.1%44th of 18651% higher
Inflation Rate0.1%176th of 19123.0%11th of 19123.0 points apart
Poverty Rate0.0%1st of 16456.2%154th of 16456.2 points apart
Gini Index36.092nd of 17033.973rd of 1706% higher
Health Spendingof GDP5.9% of GDP106th of 1924.2% of GDP150th of 19242% higher
Physiciansper 1,0003.11 per 1,00057th of 2060.38 per 1,000158th of 2068.2× higher
Hospital Bedsper 1,0005.63 per 1,00024th of 1990.50 per 1,000182nd of 1995.13 per 1,000 apart
Literacy Rate96.7%66th of 17570.4%143rd of 17537% higher
Education Spendingof GDP3.9% of GDP112th of 2020.3% of GDP201st of 2023.6 points apart
School Enrollmentgross, secondary92.3% gross, secondary97th of 20746.9% gross, secondary181st of 2072.0× higher
Renewable Energyof final consumption15.2% of final consumption122nd of 21180.3% of final consumption16th of 2115.3× lower
Forest Coverageof land area24.0% of land area121st of 21123.2% of land area122nd of 2114% higher
Internet Penetration91.6%51st of 21141.2%168th of 2112.2× higher
Mobile Subscriptionsper 100 people131.8 per 100 people54th of 21270.8 per 100 people178th of 2121.9× higher
Maternal Mortalityper 100,000 live births16 per 100,000 live births62nd of 193993 per 100,000 live births193rd of 193977 per 100,000 live births apart
Military Spendingof GDP1.71% of GDP83rd of 1630.56% of GDP150th of 1633.1× higher
Protected Areasof land area15.6% of land area119th of 21113.9% of land area132nd of 21112% higher
Median Ageyears40.1 years61st of 24018.1 years220th of 2402.2× higher
Mean Years of Schoolingyears9.0 years87th of 1486.7 years118th of 14834% higher
Human Development Index0.79777th of 1920.560163rd of 19242% higher
Happiness Index/ 106.07/ 1067th of 1644.79/ 10114th of 16427% higher
CO₂ Emissionstonnes per capita8.66 tonnes per capita30th of 2120.58 tonnes per capita175th of 2128.07 tonnes per capita apart
Obesity Rate9.1%174th of 19812.1%153rd of 19825% lower

Values are each country’s most recent published observation, so the two sides of a row may be from different years — the country pages show the year for each. Bold marks the larger of the two, which is not always the better one.

Population, 1950–2100

Observed to 2024, then the UN medium-variant projection.

ChinaNigeria
0200M400M600M800M1B1.2B1.4B19501971199320142036205720792100projected →
Source: UN World Population Prospects 2024. Values from 2025 onward are projections, not observations.
China and Nigeria population, 1950 to 2100
SeriesYearValue
China1950544M
China1975916.1M
China20001.27B
China20251.42B
China20501.26B
China2075934.5M
China2100633.4M
Nigeria195037.3M
Nigeria197563.4M
Nigeria2000126.4M
Nigeria2025237.5M
Nigeria2050359.2M
Nigeria2075447M
Nigeria2100476.7M

Reading This Comparison

Size is not the same as rate

Totals and per-capita measures answer different questions. A country can have a far larger economy and a far lower GDP per capita at the same time — both facts are in the table.

Mind the vintages

Each value is the latest available for that country, which is not always the same year on both sides. For indicators that move slowly this rarely matters; for inflation or GDP growth it can.

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