Number of deaths per year in Nigeria
Nigeria: Number of deaths per year was 2.68 million in 2023. ▲ Rising
Latest (2023)
2.68 million
Change on year
up 0.3%
World rank
4th
of 236 countries
All-time high
2.69 million
in 2020
All-time low
1.03 million
in 1950
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Number of deaths per year in Nigeria, 1950–2023
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
Nigeria recorded 2.68 million for number of deaths per year in 2023.
Compared with earlier readings it is up 0.3% on the previous year and up 6.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, number of deaths per year in Nigeria peaked at 2.69 million in 2020 and was at its lowest, 1.03 million, in 1950.
Nigeria ranks 4th of 236 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 74 years of available data.
Number of deaths per year in Nigeria, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 1.03 million | — |
| 1951 | 1.04 million | +1.3% |
| 1952 | 1.06 million | +1.5% |
| 1953 | 1.07 million | +1.5% |
| 1954 | 1.09 million | +1.4% |
| 1955 | 1.11 million | +1.8% |
| 1956 | 1.12 million | +1.6% |
| 1957 | 1.14 million | +1.7% |
| 1958 | 1.16 million | +1.4% |
| 1959 | 1.17 million | +1.4% |
| 1960 | 1.19 million | +1.5% |
| 1961 | 1.21 million | +1.4% |
| 1962 | 1.23 million | +1.7% |
| 1963 | 1.25 million | +1.6% |
| 1964 | 1.27 million | +1.7% |
| 1965 | 1.29 million | +1.4% |
| 1966 | 1.31 million | +1.8% |
| 1967 | 1.38 million | +5.2% |
| 1968 | 1.35 million | -1.9% |
| 1969 | 1.37 million | +1.2% |
| 1970 | 1.35 million | -1.1% |
| 1971 | 1.36 million | +0.4% |
| 1972 | 1.36 million | +0.2% |
| 1973 | 1.37 million | +0.7% |
| 1974 | 1.38 million | +0.5% |
| 1975 | 1.39 million | +0.9% |
| 1976 | 1.37 million | -1.3% |
| 1977 | 1.38 million | +0.6% |
| 1978 | 1.39 million | +1.2% |
| 1979 | 1.41 million | +1.4% |
| 1980 | 1.44 million | +1.9% |
| 1981 | 1.46 million | +1.4% |
| 1982 | 1.49 million | +2.1% |
| 1983 | 1.53 million | +2.6% |
| 1984 | 1.56 million | +2.1% |
| 1985 | 1.61 million | +2.8% |
| 1986 | 1.66 million | +3.1% |
| 1987 | 1.70 million | +2.4% |
| 1988 | 1.74 million | +2.5% |
| 1989 | 1.78 million | +2.5% |
| 1990 | 1.83 million | +2.8% |
| 1991 | 1.89 million | +3.3% |
| 1992 | 1.93 million | +2.0% |
| 1993 | 1.96 million | +1.7% |
| 1994 | 2.01 million | +2.5% |
| 1995 | 2.05 million | +2.0% |
| 1996 | 2.11 million | +2.5% |
| 1997 | 2.14 million | +1.8% |
| 1998 | 2.18 million | +1.5% |
| 1999 | 2.19 million | +0.7% |
| 2000 | 2.20 million | +0.6% |
| 2001 | 2.23 million | +1.0% |
| 2002 | 2.24 million | +0.7% |
| 2003 | 2.25 million | +0.2% |
| 2004 | 2.25 million | +0.4% |
| 2005 | 2.28 million | +0.9% |
| 2006 | 2.30 million | +1.1% |
| 2007 | 2.31 million | +0.4% |
| 2008 | 2.33 million | +1.0% |
| 2009 | 2.36 million | +1.1% |
| 2010 | 2.39 million | +1.5% |
| 2011 | 2.43 million | +1.7% |
| 2012 | 2.47 million | +1.5% |
| 2013 | 2.51 million | +1.6% |
| 2014 | 2.55 million | +1.7% |
| 2015 | 2.60 million | +2.0% |
| 2016 | 2.62 million | +0.6% |
| 2017 | 2.64 million | +0.8% |
| 2018 | 2.65 million | +0.5% |
| 2019 | 2.66 million | +0.1% |
| 2020 | 2.69 million | +1.4% |
| 2021 | 2.69 million | -0.1% |
| 2022 | 2.67 million | -0.8% |
| 2023 | 2.68 million | +0.3% |
Nigeria compared with similar countries
- Nigeria's 2.68 million is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 87,810, 30.5× the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Nigeria's 2.68 million is above the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 109,128, 24.5× the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 1.10 million | 1.03 million | 1.17 million | 10 |
| 1960s | 1.28 million | 1.19 million | 1.38 million | 10 |
| 1970s | 1.38 million | 1.35 million | 1.41 million | 10 |
| 1980s | 1.60 million | 1.44 million | 1.78 million | 10 |
| 1990s | 2.03 million | 1.83 million | 2.19 million | 10 |
| 2000s | 2.28 million | 2.20 million | 2.36 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 2.55 million | 2.39 million | 2.66 million | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.68 million | 2.67 million | 2.69 million | 4 |
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)
- Un projection of annual infant deaths 257,921 (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 14 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate 1.14 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0711 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate 1.17 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0.0001 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per capita 0.0729 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is number of deaths per year in Nigeria?
- Number of deaths per year in Nigeria was 2.68 million in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest number of deaths per year recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 2.69 million in 2020.
- What is the lowest number of deaths per year recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.03 million in 1950.
- How does Nigeria rank for number of deaths per year?
- Nigeria ranks 4th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
- Is number of deaths per year rising or falling in Nigeria?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Nigeria data come from?
- The figures come from Our World in Data, published as part of Number of deaths per year. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 74 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).