Side-by-side comparison of Nigeria and South Africa across population, economy, quality of life, and more. Data updated 2026.
How do Nigeria and South Africa compare? Nigeria, located in Africa, has a population of 244.3M and covers an area of 923,768 km². Its GDP (PPP) stands at $1.3T with a GDP per capita of $5,700. South Africa, in Africa, has a population of 61.1M across 1.2M km², with a GDP of $870.4B and GDP per capita of $13,600. In terms of quality of life, Nigeria has a life expectancy of 62.2 years compared to South Africa's 71.9 years.
