Statizoid

Median age in Nigeria

Nigeria: Median age was 17.75 years in 2023. ▼ Falling

Latest (2023)
17.75 years
Change on year
up 1.1%
World rank
218th
of 236 countries
All-time high
18.3 years
in 1964
All-time low
16.12 years
in 1988
Years of data
74
1950–2023

Median age in Nigeria, 1950–2023

05101520195019862023

Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.

Analysis

In 2023, median age in Nigeria stood at 17.75 years.

That represents a change of up 1.1% on the previous year and up 6.8% over ten years.

Over the whole period, median age in Nigeria peaked at 18.3 years in 1964 and was at its lowest, 16.12 years, in 1988.

That places Nigeria 218th out of 236 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the bottom quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 74 years of available data.

Median age in Nigeria, year by year

Year years Change
1950 18.06 years —
1951 18.11 years +0.3%
1952 18.15 years +0.2%
1953 18.18 years +0.2%
1954 18.2 years +0.1%
1955 18.22 years +0.1%
1956 18.24 years +0.1%
1957 18.26 years +0.1%
1958 18.27 years +0.0%
1959 18.27 years +0.0%
1960 18.28 years +0.0%
1961 18.29 years +0.0%
1962 18.29 years +0.0%
1963 18.3 years +0.0%
1964 18.3 years +0.0%
1965 18.3 years -0.0%
1966 18.28 years -0.1%
1967 18.21 years -0.4%
1968 18.1 years -0.6%
1969 17.98 years -0.6%
1970 17.89 years -0.6%
1971 17.78 years -0.6%
1972 17.66 years -0.7%
1973 17.55 years -0.7%
1974 17.43 years -0.7%
1975 17.31 years -0.7%
1976 17.18 years -0.7%
1977 17.06 years -0.7%
1978 16.93 years -0.8%
1979 16.8 years -0.7%
1980 16.7 years -0.6%
1981 16.6 years -0.6%
1982 16.49 years -0.6%
1983 16.38 years -0.7%
1984 16.29 years -0.6%
1985 16.22 years -0.4%
1986 16.17 years -0.3%
1987 16.14 years -0.2%
1988 16.12 years -0.1%
1989 16.13 years +0.0%
1990 16.15 years +0.1%
1991 16.18 years +0.2%
1992 16.24 years +0.3%
1993 16.3 years +0.4%
1994 16.38 years +0.5%
1995 16.46 years +0.5%
1996 16.54 years +0.5%
1997 16.62 years +0.5%
1998 16.7 years +0.5%
1999 16.77 years +0.4%
2000 16.82 years +0.3%
2001 16.86 years +0.2%
2002 16.88 years +0.1%
2003 16.89 years +0.0%
2004 16.87 years -0.1%
2005 16.84 years -0.2%
2006 16.8 years -0.2%
2007 16.77 years -0.2%
2008 16.73 years -0.2%
2009 16.69 years -0.2%
2010 16.65 years -0.2%
2011 16.63 years -0.1%
2012 16.62 years -0.1%
2013 16.63 years +0.0%
2014 16.64 years +0.1%
2015 16.67 years +0.1%
2016 16.71 years +0.3%
2017 16.8 years +0.5%
2018 16.92 years +0.7%
2019 17.05 years +0.8%
2020 17.21 years +0.9%
2021 17.39 years +1.0%
2022 17.57 years +1.0%
2023 17.75 years +1.1%

Nigeria compared with similar countries

  • Nigeria's 17.75 years is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 21.43 years, 83% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
  • Nigeria's 17.75 years is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 18.22 years, 97% of the median. (48 countries reporting)

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1950s 18.2 years 18.06 years 18.27 years 10
1960s 18.23 years 17.98 years 18.3 years 10
1970s 17.36 years 16.8 years 17.89 years 10
1980s 16.32 years 16.12 years 16.7 years 10
1990s 16.43 years 16.15 years 16.77 years 10
2000s 16.82 years 16.69 years 16.89 years 10
2010s 16.73 years 16.62 years 17.05 years 10
2020s 17.48 years 17.21 years 17.75 years 4

Countries ranked near Nigeria

  1. 215 South Sudan 17.97 years compare
  2. 216 Zimbabwe 17.81 years compare
  3. 217 Benin 17.77 years compare
  4. 219 Cameroon 17.75 years compare
  5. 220 Malawi 17.58 years compare
  6. 221 Zambia 17.49 years compare

See the full ranking of 236 places →

More reference data data for Nigeria

All data for Nigeria →

Frequently asked questions

What is median age in Nigeria?
Median age in Nigeria was 17.75 years in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data.
What is the highest median age recorded in Nigeria?
The highest recorded value was 18.3 years in 1964.
What is the lowest median age recorded in Nigeria?
The lowest recorded value was 16.12 years in 1988.
How does Nigeria rank for median age?
Nigeria ranks 218th out of 236 countries with data for 2023.
Is median age rising or falling in Nigeria?
Over the last ten years it is up 6.8%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
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 Median age. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Median age in Nigeria. Statizoid, drawing on UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data. Retrieved 23 September 2026, from https://reference.statizoid.com/stat/median-age/nigeria/

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About this data

Indicator
Median age
Unit
years
Source
UN, World Population Prospects (2024) – processed by Our World in Data
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data)
Coverage
236 places, 17,464 data points, 1950–2023
Last refreshed

Age that divides the population into two halves of equal size — half are younger and half are older.