Median age in Nigeria
Nigeria: Median age was 17.75 in 2023. ▼ Falling
Latest (2023)
17.75
Change on year
up 1.1%
World rank
218th
of 236 countries
All-time high
18.3
in 1964
All-time low
16.12
in 1988
Years of data
74
1950–2023
Median age in Nigeria, 1950–2023
Source: Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2023, median age in Nigeria stood at 17.75.
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 in 1964 and was at its lowest, 16.12, 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 | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 18.06 | — |
| 1951 | 18.11 | +0.3% |
| 1952 | 18.15 | +0.2% |
| 1953 | 18.18 | +0.2% |
| 1954 | 18.2 | +0.1% |
| 1955 | 18.22 | +0.1% |
| 1956 | 18.24 | +0.1% |
| 1957 | 18.26 | +0.1% |
| 1958 | 18.27 | +0.0% |
| 1959 | 18.27 | +0.0% |
| 1960 | 18.28 | +0.0% |
| 1961 | 18.29 | +0.0% |
| 1962 | 18.29 | +0.0% |
| 1963 | 18.3 | +0.0% |
| 1964 | 18.3 | +0.0% |
| 1965 | 18.3 | -0.0% |
| 1966 | 18.28 | -0.1% |
| 1967 | 18.21 | -0.4% |
| 1968 | 18.1 | -0.6% |
| 1969 | 17.98 | -0.6% |
| 1970 | 17.89 | -0.6% |
| 1971 | 17.78 | -0.6% |
| 1972 | 17.66 | -0.7% |
| 1973 | 17.55 | -0.7% |
| 1974 | 17.43 | -0.7% |
| 1975 | 17.31 | -0.7% |
| 1976 | 17.18 | -0.7% |
| 1977 | 17.06 | -0.7% |
| 1978 | 16.93 | -0.8% |
| 1979 | 16.8 | -0.7% |
| 1980 | 16.7 | -0.6% |
| 1981 | 16.6 | -0.6% |
| 1982 | 16.49 | -0.6% |
| 1983 | 16.38 | -0.7% |
| 1984 | 16.29 | -0.6% |
| 1985 | 16.22 | -0.4% |
| 1986 | 16.17 | -0.3% |
| 1987 | 16.14 | -0.2% |
| 1988 | 16.12 | -0.1% |
| 1989 | 16.13 | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 16.15 | +0.1% |
| 1991 | 16.18 | +0.2% |
| 1992 | 16.24 | +0.3% |
| 1993 | 16.3 | +0.4% |
| 1994 | 16.38 | +0.5% |
| 1995 | 16.46 | +0.5% |
| 1996 | 16.54 | +0.5% |
| 1997 | 16.62 | +0.5% |
| 1998 | 16.7 | +0.5% |
| 1999 | 16.77 | +0.4% |
| 2000 | 16.82 | +0.3% |
| 2001 | 16.86 | +0.2% |
| 2002 | 16.88 | +0.1% |
| 2003 | 16.89 | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 16.87 | -0.1% |
| 2005 | 16.84 | -0.2% |
| 2006 | 16.8 | -0.2% |
| 2007 | 16.77 | -0.2% |
| 2008 | 16.73 | -0.2% |
| 2009 | 16.69 | -0.2% |
| 2010 | 16.65 | -0.2% |
| 2011 | 16.63 | -0.1% |
| 2012 | 16.62 | -0.1% |
| 2013 | 16.63 | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 16.64 | +0.1% |
| 2015 | 16.67 | +0.1% |
| 2016 | 16.71 | +0.3% |
| 2017 | 16.8 | +0.5% |
| 2018 | 16.92 | +0.7% |
| 2019 | 17.05 | +0.8% |
| 2020 | 17.21 | +0.9% |
| 2021 | 17.39 | +1.0% |
| 2022 | 17.57 | +1.0% |
| 2023 | 17.75 | +1.1% |
Nigeria compared with similar countries
- Nigeria's 17.75 is below the median for lower middle income countries, which is 21.43, 83% of the median. (47 countries reporting)
- Nigeria's 17.75 is below the median for Sub-Saharan Africa, which is 18.22, 97% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 18.2 | 18.06 | 18.27 | 10 |
| 1960s | 18.23 | 17.98 | 18.3 | 10 |
| 1970s | 17.36 | 16.8 | 17.89 | 10 |
| 1980s | 16.32 | 16.12 | 16.7 | 10 |
| 1990s | 16.43 | 16.15 | 16.77 | 10 |
| 2000s | 16.82 | 16.69 | 16.89 | 10 |
| 2010s | 16.73 | 16.62 | 17.05 | 10 |
| 2020s | 17.48 | 17.21 | 17.75 | 4 |
Countries ranked near Nigeria
More reference data data for Nigeria
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.77 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 19.51 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 2.62 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 27 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 5.94 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 5.8 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 81.9 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 121.16 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 14.27 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is median age in Nigeria?
- Median age in Nigeria was 17.75 in 2023, according to Our World in Data.
- What is the highest median age recorded in Nigeria?
- The highest recorded value was 18.3 in 1964.
- What is the lowest median age recorded in Nigeria?
- The lowest recorded value was 16.12 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 Our World in Data, published as part of Median age. 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).