Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Nigeria instead of Zambia, you would:
Health
be 87.2% less likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Zambia, 9.4% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Nigeria, that number is 1.2% of people as of 2024.
have 17.3% more doctors per person
Zambia has 3.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Nigeria has 3.8 as of 2023.
be 30.0% less likely to die by suicide
Zambia has a suicide rate of 7.1 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Nigeria, it is 5.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 11.9 years less
In Zambia, the average life expectancy is 67 years (64 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2024. In Nigeria, that number is 55 years (54 years for men, 55 years for women) as of 2024.
be 18.0% more likely to be obese
In Zambia, 11.6% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Nigeria, that number is 13.7% of people as of 2024.
have 32.1% less access to essential health services
Zambia scores 56 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Nigeria scores 38 as of 2021.
Economy
be 48.3% less likely to be unemployed
In Zambia, 5.9% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Nigeria, that number is 3.1% as of 2025.
Life
be 11.7 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Zambia, approximately 85.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Nigeria, 993.0 women do as of 2023.
be 2.0 times more likely to die during infancy
In Zambia, approximately 34.6 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Nigeria, on the other hand, 69.8 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 19.8% more likely to have access to electricity
In Zambia, approximately 51% of people have electricity access (90% in urban areas, and 18% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Nigeria, that number is 61% of people on average (85% in urban areas, and 33% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 2.4 times more likely to have internet access
In Zambia, approximately 17.1% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Nigeria, about 41.2% do as of 2024.
be 12.0% more likely to have access to drinking water
In Zambia, approximately 73% of people have access to drinking water (90% in urban areas, and 58% in rural areas) as of 2024. In Nigeria, that number is 82% of people on average (95% in urban areas, and 67% in rural areas) as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 92.1% less on education
Zambia spends 4.1% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Nigeria spends 0.3% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 29.9% less on healthcare
Zambia spends 6.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Nigeria, that number is 4.2% of GDP as of 2023.
Infrastructure
find 89.9% less home broadband
Zambia has 0.8 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Nigeria has 0.1 as of 2024.
live with 3.4 times more strain on fresh water
Zambia withdraws 3% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Nigeria withdraws 10% as of 2022.
use 80.2% less electricity
Zambia uses 727 kWh of electricity per person each year as of 2023. Nigeria uses 144 kWh as of 2023.
Environment
be 54.0% more likely to die from air pollution
In Zambia, air pollution causes 50.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Nigeria, it causes 77.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024). How we calculate this
Compare further: Zambia vs. Nigeria
Nigeria: At a glance
How big is Nigeria compared to Zambia? See an in-depth size comparison.