Nigeria vs South Asia: Rural population
Nigeria
86.04 million
in 2025
South Asia
1.09 billion
in 2025
Nigeria rank
7th
South Asia rank
9th
Rural population over time
- Nigeria
- South Asia
How they compare
South Asia currently reports 1.09 billion against 86.04 million in Nigeria, a difference of 1.00 billion.
That makes South Asia's figure about 12.6 times Nigeria's.
Across all 66 years both countries report, South Asia has been ahead every year.
Nigeria ranks 7th and South Asia ranks 9th of 217 countries.
South Asia has averaged higher in every one of the 7 decades both report.
Head to head by decade
| Decade | Nigeria | South Asia | Difference | Ahead |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 41.25 million | 469.69 million | 428.44 million | South Asia |
| 1970s | 48.19 million | 569.09 million | 520.90 million | South Asia |
| 1980s | 57.86 million | 686.08 million | 628.22 million | South Asia |
| 1990s | 66.95 million | 826.33 million | 759.38 million | South Asia |
| 2000s | 75.63 million | 950.84 million | 875.21 million | South Asia |
| 2010s | 83.76 million | 1.03 billion | 947.34 million | South Asia |
| 2020s | 86.14 million | 1.08 billion | 990.37 million | South Asia |
Averages of every year both report within each decade.
Frequently asked questions
- Which has higher rural population, Nigeria or South Asia?
- South Asia, at 1.09 billion against 86.04 million in Nigeria as of 2025.
- What is the difference in rural population between Nigeria and South Asia?
- 1.00 billion, with South Asia ahead.
- How many years of comparable data are there for Nigeria and South Asia?
- 66 years are reported by both, from 1960 to 2025.
- How do Nigeria and South Asia rank globally for rural population?
- Nigeria ranks 7th and South Asia ranks 9th of 217 countries.
- Where does this data come from?
- World Urbanization Prospects, United Nations (UN), published as Rural population. Statizoid refreshes it automatically from the source and publishes the full history for both places.
Individual pages
About this data
Rural population refers to people living in rural areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated as the difference between total population and urban population. Aggregation of urban and rural population may not add up to total population because of different country coverages.