Lagos, Abuja, Ibadan, Enugu, and Port Harcourt emerged as Nigeria’s top five cities in the 2025 Global Startup Ecosystem Index by StartupBlink, a leading global startup research platform.
They were followed by Ilorin, Kano, Kaduna, Nguru, and Benin City, rounding out the country’s top ten. The index assessed over 1,450 cities across more than 110 countries.
“Nigeria has six cities ranked in the global top 1,000, with the majority experiencing a decline in rank,” the report said. Despite these dips, Nigeria remains West Africa’s dominant startup hub, consistently placing six cities in the region’s top ten since 2021.
Nationally, however, Nigeria dropped two spots, from 64th in 2024 to 66th in 2025, slipping to fourth place among African countries on the index. It also recorded the lowest ecosystem growth (below 6 percent) among the continent’s top seven startup nations.
Still, Nigeria leads the continent in the number of unicorn startups, with companies like Flutterwave and OPay expanding aggressively across Africa.
The country continues to lean heavily on Lagos, whose ecosystem is 11.8 times larger than Abuja’s, the next most prominent city. “With an internal market of more than 200 million people (projected to reach 400 million by 2050), Nigeria and its capital, Lagos, have become a leading startup hub in Africa,” the report added.
Read also: Top 10 countries powering Africa’s startup ecosystem in 2025
2025 Rankings by City:
Lagos ranked first nationally and 76th globally. The state recorded a 14.7 percent annual ecosystem growth with an 11.226 score.
“Lagos, Nigeria’s only city in the global top 100, ranks 76th after falling six spots and exiting the global top 70 it entered in 2024,” the report said. “Lagos remains Africa’s top-ranked city since 2021, however, its growth rate is one of the lowest in the region.”
Abuja ranked second nationally, and 399th globally. The state recorded a 50.3 percent annual ecosystem growth with a 0.946 score.
“Abuja is the Nigerian city with the highest growth rate above 50 percent and the only one to experience a global climb, joining the global top 400 and ranking 399th,” the report stated.
Ibadan ranked third nationally and 482nd globally. The state recorded a 0.2 percent annual ecosystem with a 0.609 score.
Enugu ranked fourth nationally and 730th globally. The state recorded a 4.8 percent annual ecosystem growth with a 0.261 total score.
Port Harcourt ranked fifth nationally and 803rd globally. The state recorded a 6.3 percent annual ecosystem growth with a 0.216 total score.
Ilorin ranked sixth nationally and 885th globally. Ilorin is new to the list with a 0.177 total score.
Kano ranked seventh on the national list and 1120th globally. The state recorded a 34.1 percent decline in annual ecosystem growth with a 0.104 total score.
Kaduna ranked in eighth position nationally and 1207th globally. The state is new on the list with a 0.090 total score.
Nguru, a Local Government Area in Yobe State, recorded ninth position in national rank and 1241st globally. It recorded 0.080 as its total score. Benin City rounds up the country’s top ten and ranks 1250th globally with a 30.2 percent annual ecosystem growth, with a 0.070 total score.
