River system4,200 km course
Niger River
West Africa's principal river; enters Nigeria from Niger Republic and flows south to the Niger Delta.
Kebbi, Niger, Kwara +6 more
Niger River on the mapNIGERIA OVERVIEW · PLACES
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Every state, LGA, metropolis and land feature — tap the map for a snapshot, then dive into profiles, compare and the full atlas.
Tap a state
Nigeria in numbers
Capital Abuja · Independent since 1 October 1960
- Population
- 224M
- Sum of the 37 state projections
- States & FCT
- 37
- 774 local government areas
- Urban population
- 62.0%
- Share living in cities, 2023
- Literacy rate
- 59.57%
- Adult literacy rate
- Population growth
- 2.10%
- Annual rate, 2023
- Median age
- 17.75
- Years, 2023
- National legislature
- 109 + 360
- Senate + House of Representatives seats
- Inflation rate
- 24.66%
- Year-on-year, 2023
Select any state on the map to preview it here — use the × control to return to this overview.
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Country profile
Nigeria by the numbers
Atlas metrics for the federation — the same categories and sources as the explorer compare panel.
- States
- 37
- LGAs
- 774
- Total land area
- 913.9k km²
- Geopolitical regions
- 6
- Official name
- Federal Republic of Nigeria
- Capital
- Abuja
- Government
- Federal presidential republic
- Independence
- 1 October 1960
- Currency
- Nigerian naira (₦)
- Official languages
- English (official) · Hausa · Yoruba · Igbo · 500+ others
- Time zone
- UTC+1 (WAT)
- Calling code
- +234
Federal summary · Boundaries © UN SALB
Population © NPC / NBS
- 1LagosSouth West21,000,000
- 2KanoNorth West16,000,000
- 3KadunaNorth West9,800,000
- 4OyoSouth West9,400,000
- 5KatsinaNorth West9,300,000
- 6BauchiNorth East8,200,000
- 7RiversSouth South8,200,000
- 8JigawaNorth West7,200,000
- 9BornoNorth East6,800,000
- 10NigerNorth Central6,800,000
IGR & indicators © NBS / BudgIT
- 1LagosSouth West₦815.9bn
- 2Federal Capital TerritoryNorth Central₦211.1bn
- 3RiversSouth South₦195.4bn
- 4OgunSouth West₦146.9bn
- 5DeltaSouth South₦114.1bn
- 6EdoSouth South₦64.7bn
- 7KadunaNorth West₦62.5bn
- 8KwaraNorth Central₦59.6bn
- 9OyoSouth West₦52.7bn
- 10Akwa IbomSouth South₦43.2bn
Head to head
Map itCompare states side by side
Same categories, tabs and metric rows as the explorer — pick three states and read them line by line.
1
2
3
Territory & representation
Land areaUN SALB boundary
Lagos
3,678km²
−83% vs median
★Kano
20,456km²
−3% vs median
Rivers
10,333km²
−51% vs median
Local government areasConstitutional tier 3
Lagos
20
at the median
★Kano
44
+120% vs median
Rivers
23
+15% vs median
WardsINEC delimitation register
Lagos
245
+4% vs median
★Kano
484
+105% vs median
Rivers
319
+35% vs median
Polling unitsINEC delimitation register
★Lagos
13,322
+222% vs median
Kano
11,212
+171% vs median
Rivers
6,864
+66% vs median
House of Assembly seatsState legislature, 2023–2027
★Lagos
24
+167% vs median
Kano
24
+167% vs median
Rivers
13
+44% vs median
SenatorsOf 109 senatorial districts
★Lagos
3
at the median
Kano
3
at the median
Rivers
3
at the median
Distance to AbujaStraight-line, state capital to Abuja
Lagos
488km
+33% vs median
★Kano
355km
−3% vs median
Rivers
448km
+22% vs median
People & society
Estimated populationNPC / NBS projection 2023
★Lagos
21M
+304% vs median
Kano
16M
+208% vs median
Rivers
8.2M
+58% vs median
Population densityPeople per km², 2023
★Lagos
5,710/km²
+1826% vs median
Kano
782/km²
+164% vs median
Rivers
794/km²
+168% vs median
National population rankPosition among the 36 states, 2023
★Lagos
1
−95% vs median
Kano
2
−89% vs median
Rivers
7
−62% vs median
Population 2006NPC census figure
Lagos
9.1M
+167% vs median
★Kano
9.4M
+175% vs median
Rivers
5.2M
+52% vs median
Literacy rateAdult literacy, 2021
★Lagos
92.8%
+50% vs median
Kano
45.5%
−26% vs median
Rivers
82.1%
+33% vs median
Primary net enrolmentShare of primary-age children enrolled, 2021
★Lagos
100.4%
+2% vs median
Kano
86.5%
−12% vs median
Rivers
94.9%
−3% vs median
Secondary net enrolmentShare of secondary-age children enrolled, 2021
Lagos
81.5%
+4% vs median
Kano
64.0%
−19% vs median
★Rivers
92.3%
+17% vs median
General details
Year establishedState creation or merger
★Lagos
1,967
−1% vs median
Kano
1,967
−1% vs median
Rivers
1,967
−1% vs median
House of Reps seatsFederal constituencies in the state
★Lagos
24
+167% vs median
Kano
24
+167% vs median
Rivers
13
+44% vs median
Fiscal capacity
Annual IGRInternally generated revenue, 2024
★Lagos
₦1.26T
+3122% vs median
Kano
₦74.8B
+91% vs median
Rivers
₦317.3B
+710% vs median
IGR per capitaDerived: 2024 IGR ÷ 2023 population
★Lagos
₦60,074
+801% vs median
Kano
₦4,673
−30% vs median
Rivers
₦38,696
+480% vs median
IGR per LGADerived: 2024 IGR ÷ local government areas
★Lagos
₦63.1B
+3248% vs median
Kano
₦1.7B
−10% vs median
Rivers
₦13.8B
+632% vs median
Browse directory
Showing 18 of 37Territories & features
37 entries — every state, the largest LGAs, the biggest conurbations and the headwaters that hold them together.
| Place | Population | Open |
|---|---|---|
| Abia | 4,100,000 | Profile |
| Adamawa | 5,200,000 | Profile |
| Akwa Ibom | 5,500,000 | Profile |
| Anambra | 6,400,000 | Profile |
| Bauchi | 8,200,000 | Profile |
| Bayelsa | 2,700,000 | Profile |
| Benue | 6,200,000 | Profile |
| Borno | 6,800,000 | Profile |
| Cross River | 4,300,000 | Profile |
| Delta | 6,200,000 | Profile |
| Ebonyi | 3,200,000 | Profile |
| Edo | 4,900,000 | Profile |
| Ekiti | 3,400,000 | Profile |
| Enugu | 4,900,000 | Profile |
| Federal Capital Territory | 3,800,000 | Profile |
| Gombe | 4,100,000 | Profile |
| Imo | 5,900,000 | Profile |
| Jigawa | 7,200,000 | Profile |
Use the zone filters, or the search above, to reach the remaining 19 entries.
The geography underneath it all
Rivers, reservoirs and highlands that decide where people settle and how the states are shaped.
Reservoir & dam~1,300 km² at full supply
Kainji Lake
Nigeria's largest man-made lake, impounded by Kainji Dam (1968).
Niger & Kebbi
Kainji Lake on the mapHighland plateau~1,200–1,829 m (Shere Hills)
Jos Plateau
Volcanic highland in central Nigeria with a cooler climate and tin-mining history.
Plateau
Jos Plateau on the mapRiver system1,400 km course
Benue River
The Niger's largest tributary; enters from Cameroon and meets the Niger at Lokoja.
Adamawa, Taraba, Benue +2 more
Benue River on the mapStates & FCT
37
Local government areas
774
Geopolitical zones
6
Mapped features
4
Take it further
Put all 37 states on one canvas
Open the explorer to move between the political, economic and physical lenses with every place in the atlas already geocoded.
- Niger River4,200 km course
- Kainji Lake~1,300 km² at full supply
- Jos Plateau~1,200–1,829 m (Shere Hills)
- Benue River1,400 km course