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Niger: map, flag, capital and key facts

Niger is a country in Africa, in West Africa, with about 27.9 million people (2025) and an area of 1,267,000 square kilometres. Its capital is Niamey, and it shares land borders with 7 countries.

By Team Geography Last reviewed

Flag of Niger
Flag of Niger
Map showing where the country sits among its neighbours
Niger in solid, land neighbours outlined, capital marked.

Key facts about Niger

CapitalNiamey
ContinentAfrica
RegionWest Africa
Population27,917,831 2025, World Bank. 54th of 195.
Area1,267,000 km² (489,191 sq mi) World Bank, surface area. 21st largest of 195.
Population density22 people per km²
Land neighbours7: Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, Libya, Mali, Nigeria
Official nameRepublic of the Niger
UN statusMember state
Capital coordinates13.52° N, 2.11° E Niamey, Natural Earth.

Land neighbours

Niger borders 7 countries on land. Each links to its own page.

AlgeriaAlgiersBeninPorto-Novo and CotonouBurkina FasoOuagadougouChadN'DjamenaLibyaTripoliMaliBamakoNigeriaAbuja

From the Geography app

The app teaches each country through short hand written lenses: PLACE for physical geography, STORY for history and identity, NOW for the news, and THREAD for the ties between countries. Here is one of Niger's 5, in full.

PLACELens 1 of 5

A Saharan giant with most of its people in a narrow southern strip

Roughly 80 percent of Niger, among Africa's largest countries, is Saharan desert. Nearly all of its 26 million people live in a semi-arid Sahel band along the southern border, near the Niger River and the Nigerian frontier. The capital, Niamey, sits on the river in the southwest. In the north the Air Mountains rise from the sand, and the Tenere, one of the Sahara's emptiest stretches, runs toward Libya. The habitable strip is crowded; the north is nearly empty and hard to govern.

More on Tenere

A hyper-arid sand sea in northeastern Niger, sometimes called "the desert within a desert." Tuareg caravan routes have crossed it for centuries, linking the Sahel to Libya and Algeria.

4 more lenses on Niger in the app

  • STORY The world's highest fertility rate and what it means
  • NOW Uranium, coups, and the contest for the Sahel
  • STORY Agadez, the last stop before the desert
  • THREAD Niger sits at the crossroads of migration, security, and great-power rivalry

Titles only. The app brings each lens back on a spaced repetition schedule set by how well you knew it: New, Hazy or Clear.

Compare Niger with another country

Opens the country comparison tool with population, area, income and more side by side, every figure dated.

Common questions

What is the capital of Niger?
The capital of Niger is Niamey. Niamey lies at about 13.5 degrees north and 2.1 degrees east. Niger is in Africa, in the region often called West Africa. It is home to about 27.9 million people. The world capitals quiz on this site tests every capital, and the printable capitals sheets cover each continent.
What is the population of Niger?
About 27.9 million people live in Niger, according to the World Bank figures for 2025. That makes it the 54th most populous of the 195 countries. With an area of 1,267,000 square kilometres, that is about 22 people per square kilometre.
What countries border Niger?
Niger shares land borders with 7 countries: Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad, Libya, Mali and Nigeria. The map on this page outlines each of them around Niger. The count includes only borders on land, not neighbours across a sea or a lake.
How big is Niger?
Niger covers 1,267,000 square kilometres, or about 489,191 square miles. That makes it the 21st largest of the 195 countries. The figure is total surface area, which includes inland water such as lakes and rivers. Its population of about 27.9 million gives a density of 22 people per square kilometre.

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