Life expectancy at birth in Nigeria
Nigeria: Life expectancy at birth was 54.46 years in 2023. ▲ Rising
Life expectancy at birth in Nigeria, 1950–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
Nigeria recorded 54.46 years for life expectancy at birth in 2023. That is the highest value across all 74 years on record.
That represents a change of up 0.7% on the previous year and up 5.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, life expectancy at birth in Nigeria peaked at 54.46 years in 2023 and was at its lowest, 35.53 years, in 1950.
That places Nigeria 236th out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 36.27 years | 35.53 years | 37.03 years | 10 |
| 1960s | 37.97 years | 37.21 years | 38.95 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 42.94 years | 40.01 years | 45.74 years | 10 |
| 1980s | 46.12 years | 45.83 years | 46.44 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 45.88 years | 45.48 years | 46.61 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 49.21 years | 47.14 years | 51.08 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 52.05 years | 51.31 years | 53.01 years | 10 |
| 2020s | 53.77 years | 53.07 years | 54.46 years | 4 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More health data for Nigeria
- 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)
- Deaths in armed conflicts based on where they occurred 726 deaths (2026)
- Deaths in armed conflicts by region 726 deaths (2026)
- Age population, age 25, male, interpolated 2.03 million (2025)
- Age population, age 25, female, interpolated 1.96 million (2025)
- Age population, age 24, male, interpolated 2.13 million (2025)
- Age population, age 24, female, interpolated 2.06 million (2025)
- Age population, age 23, male, interpolated 2.23 million (2025)
- Age population, age 23, female, interpolated 2.15 million (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is life expectancy at birth in Nigeria?
- Life expectancy at birth in Nigeria was 54.46 years in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest life expectancy at birth recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 54.46 years in 2023.
- What is the lowest life expectancy at birth recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 35.53 years in 1950.
- How does Nigeria rank for life expectancy at birth?
- Nigeria ranks 236th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is life expectancy at birth rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 5.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nigeria data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Life expectancy at birth. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Period life expectancy at birth.