The minimum wage in Nigeria is ₦70,000 a month. It is a national rate set by federal law, the National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act 2024, and it applies across the country. It replaced a lower rate of ₦30,000 a month, which came from the National Minimum Wage Act 2019.
Source: State House, 2026. Method: how we compile this.
Most people searching for this want a quick answer, and that is the answer. The rest of this article is for the reader who wants to cite the figure, check an employer, plan a budget or understand how large the change was. Every number below is read from our minimum wage data, and each one links back to the official page it came from.
Minimum wage in Nigeria today
The current national minimum wage is ₦70,000 a month. It is the lowest amount an employer covered by the law may pay a full-time worker for a month of work. It is a floor. Employers, states and unions are free to agree a higher amount, and many do.
| Rate | Law | |
|---|---|---|
| Current national minimum wage | ₦70,000 a month | National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act 2024 |
| Earlier national minimum wage | ₦30,000 a month | National Minimum Wage Act 2019 |
Source: State House, 2026; National Assembly, 2026. Method: how we compile this.
We last retrieved these figures on 10 Oct 2026. The same record, with its source link, is on the Nigeria minimum wage page.
What the law says
Nigerian minimum wage law has two parts that matter to a reader. The first is the main Act, and the second is the amendment that changed the rate.
The earlier rate came from the National Minimum Wage Act 2019. The current rate comes from the National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act 2024, which amended the main Act and put the new figure into law. The President announced the signing in a national broadcast, and the State House page that carries the text of that broadcast is the official source we link for the figure. The page for the earlier Act on the National Assembly website records its passage through the Senate.
One thing we do not publish is a start date for the new rate. Reports give different dates for when it began to apply, and some mention pay being backdated. We could not confirm a commencement date on an official government page, so we do not print one. If the exact date matters to you, for example in a dispute over back pay, read the signed Act itself or ask the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment.
The amendment also carries a review provision, which means the figure is expected to be looked at again after a set period. If the rate is raised in future, the change will come through another Act, and our record will be updated when the official source is published.
Every change to Nigeria's minimum wage
Our data holds two national rates for Nigeria. The older one is ₦30,000 a month and the current one is ₦70,000 a month. That is a rise of ₦40,000 a month, or 133%. Put another way, the current minimum is 2.30 times the one it replaced.
Neither rate carries a confirmed start date on an official page, which is why we cannot draw Nigeria's rise as a dated line chart the way we do for countries where each change has a dated source. We would rather show a shorter record that is sound than a longer one with guessed dates. For comparison, the chart below shows how a country with a fully dated record, Kenya, has moved its minimum wage for the general labourer over time. It uses the same chart that appears on our country pages.
Source: Kenya Law, 2026. Method: how we compile this.
How big is the rise?
A rise from ₦30,000 to ₦70,000 is large when it is measured in naira, and the useful question is what the money buys. A wage is only worth what it can purchase.
You can test this with a single item that nearly every household and business feels, which is petrol. In our fuel price data, the latest monthly national average petrol price for Nigeria is ₦1,596.25 a litre, for May 2026. Dividing one month of the minimum wage by that price gives about 44 litres. That is the amount of petrol a worker on the minimum wage could buy with a whole month of pay, if they spent every naira on it.
Two cautions apply. A monthly average is not the price at any one pump, and it is not today's price, as our explainer on the fuel price in Nigeria sets out. And nobody spends a full wage on petrol. The figure is a way to compare, like a basket with one item in it, and it shows how fast a rise in a headline wage can be matched by a rise in the cost of something people use every day.
Source: National Bureau of Statistics, 2026; State House, 2026. Method: how we compile this.
Who does the minimum wage apply to?
The amendment is a federal law that applies across the country, and the national rate covers workers in employment under a contract. The minimum matters most in private firms, small businesses and the lowest pay grades.
Reports differ on which employers are exempt, and the commonly repeated version is that small employers below a certain staff size are outside the law. We have not been able to check that against the text of the Act on an official page, so we do not state it as fact. If you run a small business or work for one, read the Act, or ask your state labour office whether it covers you.
A few points hold whatever the exemptions are. The figure is a monthly rate for a full month of work. It does not by itself tell you whether allowances such as transport or housing are counted inside it, so ask for your pay terms in writing. A worker paid below the legal minimum has a case to raise with the employer, the union if there is one, and the labour office.
Nigeria compared with Ghana and Kenya
Comparing minimum wages between countries is harder than it looks, because countries state the rate for different periods. Ghana sets a daily rate and Kenya sets a monthly rate for a defined category of worker, and Nigeria sets a monthly national rate. The table puts each country's own stated figure side by side without converting them, so you can see exactly what each one says.
| Country | Minimum wage as stated | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|
| Nigeria | ₦70,000 a month | National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act 2024 |
| Ghana | GH₵ 21.77 a day | National Daily Minimum Wage communique |
| Kenya | KSh 18,047.40 a month | Regulation of Wages (General) (Amendment) Order |
Source: State House, 2026; Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, 2026; Kenya Law, 2026. Method: how we compile this.
The Kenya rate is for a general labourer in the main cities, and it excludes the housing allowance. The Ghana rate is a daily rate. To compare them with Nigeria in a fair way you would need the same period, the same currency at the same date and a view on how many days a month the person works. We do not do that conversion for you, because every choice of days and exchange rate changes the answer. The chart below shows Ghana's own record over time.
Source: Fair Wages and Salaries Commission, 2026. Method: how we compile this.
You can browse every country we cover on the minimum wage tracker, and the Nigeria country page links the other public records we hold for the country, including the economy figures.
How to check that you are paid the minimum wage
If you want to know whether your pay meets the national minimum, work through these steps in order.
- Find your monthly pay for a full month of work, before any deduction for tax or pension, and compare it with ₦70,000.
- Check whether you work a full month. A part-time worker's pay is proportional, and a worker who is paid by the day should divide the monthly rate by the days in their working month.
- Ask for your contract or offer letter in writing. It should state your pay and what is included in it.
- Keep your payslips or bank statements. They are your evidence if there is a dispute.
- Raise the issue with your employer first and, if that fails, with your union or the state labour office. The Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment and your state labour office can tell you how to file a complaint.
This is general information. It is not legal advice, and a lawyer or your union can tell you how the law applies to your case.
Where our figures come from
The national rate and the Act behind it are read from official government pages: the State House page for the amendment and the National Assembly page for the earlier Act. We retrieved both ourselves and record the date. We use no news report as the source of a figure. Where an official page does not confirm a detail, such as a start date or an exemption, we say so and leave the detail out. You can read how we collect and check records on our methods page, and developers can pull the same data through the PollsAfrica API.
Frequently asked questions
What is the minimum wage in Nigeria?
The national minimum wage in Nigeria is ₦70,000 a month, set by the National Minimum Wage (Amendment) Act 2024.
What was the minimum wage before?
The earlier national minimum wage was ₦30,000 a month, under the National Minimum Wage Act 2019. The current rate is 2.30 times that.
Is the Nigerian minimum wage monthly or daily?
It is a monthly rate. Nigeria states its national minimum wage for a month, unlike Ghana, which states a daily rate.
Do states have to pay more than the national minimum?
No. The national rate is a floor, and a state or an employer may agree a higher amount.
When did the new minimum wage start?
We do not publish a start date, because we could not confirm one on an official government page. The Act itself and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment can confirm the date that applies to your case.
How much petrol does the minimum wage buy?
At the latest monthly national average in our fuel price data, ₦1,596.25 a litre for May 2026, one month of the minimum wage buys about 44 litres. Read that as a comparison only.
Where can I see the minimum wage for other African countries?
The minimum wage tracker lists every country we cover, each with its legal source and retrieval date.
Ayoola Jegede
Ayoola Jegede founded PollsAfrica and leads it as director. He is a PMP-certified programme leader and a member of World Association for Public Opinion Research (WAPOR) and American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR). ayoolajegede.com