Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Ghana instead of Nigeria, you would:
Health
live 11.1 years longer
In Nigeria, the average life expectancy is 55 years (54 years for men, 55 years for women) as of 2024. In Ghana, that number is 66 years (63 years for men, 68 years for women) as of 2024.
have 26.3% more access to essential health services
Nigeria scores 38 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Ghana scores 48 as of 2021.
be 25.0% more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Nigeria, 1.2% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Ghana, that number is 1.5% of people as of 2024.
have 30.0% fewer doctors per person
Nigeria has 3.8 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Ghana has 2.7 as of 2023.
Economy
make 2.7 times more money
Nigeria has a GDP per capita of $1,224 as of 2025, while in Ghana, the GDP per capita is $3,257 as of 2025.
Life
be 76.4% less likely to die during childbirth
In Nigeria, approximately 993.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Ghana, 234.0 women do as of 2023.
be 60.6% less likely to die during infancy
In Nigeria, approximately 69.8 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Ghana, on the other hand, 27.5 children do as of 2024.
have 20.2% fewer children
In Nigeria, there are approximately 32.5 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Ghana, there are 25.9 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 46.2% more likely to have access to electricity
In Nigeria, approximately 61% of people have electricity access (85% in urban areas, and 33% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Ghana, that number is 90% of people on average (98% in urban areas, and 78% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 75.2% more likely to have internet access
In Nigeria, approximately 41.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Ghana, about 72.2% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 29.6% less on healthcare
Nigeria spends 4.2% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Ghana, that number is 3.0% of GDP as of 2023.
spend 9.1 times more on education
Nigeria spends 0.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Ghana spends 2.9% of total GDP on education as of 2022.
Geography
see 36.8% less coastline
Nigeria has a total of 853 km of coastline. In Ghana, that number is 539 km.
Safety
be 88.4% less likely to be murdered
Nigeria has a homicide rate of 15.8 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Ghana, that number is 1.8 per 100,000 as of 2022.
be 50.6% more likely to die in a road accident
In Nigeria, road accidents kill 17.2 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Ghana, they kill 25.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 8.2 times more home broadband
Nigeria has 0.1 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Ghana has 0.7 as of 2024.
live with 34.7% less strain on fresh water
Nigeria withdraws 10% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Ghana withdraws 6% as of 2022.
use 3.9 times more electricity
Nigeria uses 144 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Ghana uses 565 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 15.6% more likely to die from air pollution
In Nigeria, air pollution causes 77.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Ghana, it causes 89.0 as of 2019.
emit 22.8% more CO2
Nigeria emits 0.6 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Ghana emits 0.7 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2022–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Nigeria vs. Ghana
Ghana: At a glance
How big is Ghana compared to Nigeria? See an in-depth size comparison.