Fertility rate, total in Nigeria
Nigeria: Fertility rate, total was 4.38 births per woman in 2024. ▼ Falling
Latest (2024)
4.38 births per woman
Change on year
down 2.2%
World rank
15th
of 217 countries
All-time high
6.92 births per woman
in 1978
All-time low
4.38 births per woman
in 2024
Years of data
65
1960–2024
Fertility rate, total in Nigeria, 1960–2024
Source: World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Population Division. Measured in births per woman.
Analysis
Nigeria recorded 4.38 births per woman for fertility rate, total in 2024. That is the lowest value across all 65 years on record.
The figure is down 2.2% on the previous year and down 22.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, fertility rate, total in Nigeria peaked at 6.92 births per woman in 1978 and was at its lowest, 4.38 births per woman, in 2024.
Nigeria ranks 15th of 217 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 65 years of available data.
Fertility rate, total in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | births per woman | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 6.36 births per woman | — |
| 1961 | 6.35 births per woman | -0.2% |
| 1962 | 6.36 births per woman | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 6.35 births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1964 | 6.36 births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1965 | 6.37 births per woman | +0.1% |
| 1966 | 6.39 births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1967 | 6.4 births per woman | +0.2% |
| 1968 | 6.42 births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1969 | 6.44 births per woman | +0.3% |
| 1970 | 6.47 births per woman | +0.4% |
| 1971 | 6.53 births per woman | +1.0% |
| 1972 | 6.58 births per woman | +0.7% |
| 1973 | 6.63 births per woman | +0.8% |
| 1974 | 6.7 births per woman | +1.1% |
| 1975 | 6.77 births per woman | +1.0% |
| 1976 | 6.81 births per woman | +0.5% |
| 1977 | 6.86 births per woman | +0.8% |
| 1978 | 6.92 births per woman | +0.9% |
| 1979 | 6.89 births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1980 | 6.85 births per woman | -0.6% |
| 1981 | 6.82 births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1982 | 6.8 births per woman | -0.3% |
| 1983 | 6.78 births per woman | -0.4% |
| 1984 | 6.7 births per woman | -1.1% |
| 1985 | 6.62 births per woman | -1.3% |
| 1986 | 6.56 births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1987 | 6.5 births per woman | -0.8% |
| 1988 | 6.5 births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1989 | 6.49 births per woman | -0.1% |
| 1990 | 6.46 births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1991 | 6.43 births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1992 | 6.39 births per woman | -0.5% |
| 1993 | 6.35 births per woman | -0.6% |
| 1994 | 6.32 births per woman | -0.6% |
| 1995 | 6.27 births per woman | -0.7% |
| 1996 | 6.22 births per woman | -0.9% |
| 1997 | 6.14 births per woman | -1.3% |
| 1998 | 6.07 births per woman | -1.1% |
| 1999 | 6.08 births per woman | +0.2% |
| 2000 | 6.12 births per woman | +0.7% |
| 2001 | 6.13 births per woman | +0.1% |
| 2002 | 6.12 births per woman | -0.2% |
| 2003 | 6.1 births per woman | -0.3% |
| 2004 | 6.09 births per woman | -0.2% |
| 2005 | 6.06 births per woman | -0.4% |
| 2006 | 6.05 births per woman | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 6.03 births per woman | -0.4% |
| 2008 | 6.02 births per woman | -0.0% |
| 2009 | 5.99 births per woman | -0.5% |
| 2010 | 5.95 births per woman | -0.8% |
| 2011 | 5.89 births per woman | -0.9% |
| 2012 | 5.8 births per woman | -1.6% |
| 2013 | 5.69 births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2014 | 5.62 births per woman | -1.3% |
| 2015 | 5.5 births per woman | -2.1% |
| 2016 | 5.34 births per woman | -2.9% |
| 2017 | 5.18 births per woman | -3.0% |
| 2018 | 5.02 births per woman | -3.1% |
| 2019 | 4.86 births per woman | -3.2% |
| 2020 | 4.7 births per woman | -3.3% |
| 2021 | 4.64 births per woman | -1.4% |
| 2022 | 4.55 births per woman | -1.8% |
| 2023 | 4.48 births per woman | -1.5% |
| 2024 | 4.38 births per woman | -2.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 6.38 births per woman | 6.35 births per woman | 6.44 births per woman | 10 |
| 1970s | 6.72 births per woman | 6.47 births per woman | 6.92 births per woman | 10 |
| 1980s | 6.66 births per woman | 6.49 births per woman | 6.85 births per woman | 10 |
| 1990s | 6.27 births per woman | 6.07 births per woman | 6.46 births per woman | 10 |
| 2000s | 6.07 births per woman | 5.99 births per woman | 6.13 births per woman | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.49 births per woman | 4.86 births per woman | 5.95 births per woman | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.55 births per woman | 4.38 births per woman | 4.7 births per woman | 5 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More health data for Nigeria
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.08 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.8137 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,301 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 257,921 deaths (2100)
- Population ages 0-14, female, annual growth rate 0.842 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, per capita 0.1997 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, annual growth rate 0.8652 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per unit of GDP 0.0002 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per capita 0.2055 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is fertility rate, total in Nigeria?
- Fertility rate, total in Nigeria was 4.38 births per woman in 2024, according to World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Population Division.
- What is the highest fertility rate, total recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 6.92 births per woman in 1978.
- What is the lowest fertility rate, total recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 4.38 births per woman in 2024.
- How does Nigeria rank for fertility rate, total?
- Nigeria ranks 15th out of 217 countries with data for 2024.
- Is fertility rate, total rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is down 22.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Nigeria data come from?
- The figures come from World Population Prospects, United Nations (UN), publisher: UN Population Division, published as part of Fertility rate, total (births per woman). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Total fertility rate represents the number of children that would be born to a woman if she were to live to the end of her childbearing years and bear children in accordance with age-specific fertility rates of the specified year.