Which has higher food expenditure per person, Nigeria or South Africa?

South Africa, at 615.91 current US$ against 566.21 current US$ in Nigeria as of 2023.

What is the difference in food expenditure per person between Nigeria and South Africa?

49.7 current US$, with South Africa ahead.

How many years of comparable data are there for Nigeria and South Africa?

7 years are reported by both, from 2017 to 2023.

Where does this data come from?

USDA Economic Research Service (2022); USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) (2023); USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Food expenditure per person. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

Nigeria vs South Africa: Food expenditure per person

Nigeria

566.21 current US$

in 2023

South Africa

615.91 current US$

in 2023

Nigeria rank

95th

South Africa rank

93rd

Food expenditure per person over time

Nigeria
South Africa

How they compare

South Africa currently reports 615.91 current US$ against 566.21 current US$ in Nigeria, a difference of 49.7 current US$.

That makes South Africa's figure about 1.1 times Nigeria's.

The two have swapped places 1 time across 7 shared years of data; in 2017 it was Nigeria ahead.

Nigeria ranks 95th and South Africa ranks 93rd of 104 countries.

Across the 2 decades both report, Nigeria averaged higher in 1 and South Africa in 1.

Head to head by decade

Decade	Nigeria	South Africa	Difference	Ahead
2010s	929.12 current US$	742.5 current US$	186.62 current US$	Nigeria
2020s	739.78 current US$	762.71 current US$	22.93 current US$	South Africa

Averages of every year both report within each decade.

Frequently asked questions

Which has higher food expenditure per person, Nigeria or South Africa?: South Africa, at 615.91 current US$ against 566.21 current US$ in Nigeria as of 2023.
What is the difference in food expenditure per person between Nigeria and South Africa?: 49.7 current US$, with South Africa ahead.
How many years of comparable data are there for Nigeria and South Africa?: 7 years are reported by both, from 2017 to 2023.
How do Nigeria and South Africa rank globally for food expenditure per person?: Nigeria ranks 95th and South Africa ranks 93rd of 104 countries.
Where does this data come from?: USDA Economic Research Service (2022); USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) (2023); USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) (2025) – processed by Our World in Data, published as Food expenditure per person. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.

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Nigeria vs South Africa: Food expenditure per person. Statizoid, drawing on USDA Economic Research Service (2022); USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) (2023); USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) (2025) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 29 August 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/compare/food-expenditure-per-person-per-year/nigeria/south-africa/

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About this data

Indicator: Food expenditure per person
Unit: current US$
Source: USDA Economic Research Service (2022); USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) (2023); USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) (2025) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage: 104 places, 727 data points, 2017–2023
Last refreshed: 28 August 2026

Amount of money spend on food in a given year. This only includes food eaten at home, and does not include alcoholic beverages and tobacco.