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GDP per Capita in Africa by Country
Which African countries have the highest GDP per capita in 2024?
Seychelles leads African countries by GDP per capita in 2024 at $19,743.89, followed by Mauritius at $11,949.80. These two island economies stand apart from the continental median of $1,637.42, with Seychelles recording a value 12.1 times that median. The table below ranks 52 African countries by nominal GDP per capita for the reference year 2024. Figures are in current US dollars. The top 15 includes resource-rich states such as Gabon ($8,744.01) and Botswana ($7,406.42), alongside North African economies like Libya ($6,782.48) and South Africa ($6,315.92). At the other end, Burundi ranks 52nd at $281.51, while South Sudan (51st) records $300.86. The full table provides GDP per capita in both nominal and purchasing power parity terms, plus total nominal GDP for each country. All values are as published for 2024.
What is GDP per capita (nominal)?
GDP per capita is a country's GDP divided by its midyear population. It is the most common shorthand for average income or output per person.
How it is measured. Nominal GDP in current US dollars divided by midyear population. Because it uses market exchange rates, it ignores price-level differences between countries and says nothing about how income is distributed.
How to read it. Use it to compare average economic output per person. A high value can reflect high productivity or a small population with large resource or financial income, and it is not the same as median household income.
Source: World Bank WDI. See our methodology.
GDP per Capita in Africa by Country, 2024
| # | Country | GDP per Capita | GDP per Capita PPP | GDP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Seychelles | $19,744 | $36,578 | $2.2B |
| 2 | Mauritius | $11,950 | $31,516 | $15.0B |
| 3 | Gabon | $8,744 | $22,865 | $20.9B |
| 4 | Botswana | $7,406 | $19,802 | $19.4B |
| 5 | Equatorial Guinea | $7,387 | $19,249 | $12.8B |
| 6 | Libya | $6,782 | $14,801 | $48.4B |
| 7 | South Africa | $6,316 | $15,589 | $401.1B |
| 8 | Algeria | $5,763 | $17,669 | $269.2B |
| 9 | Cape Verde | $5,261 | $11,349 | $2.7B |
| 10 | Namibia | $4,442 | $11,774 | $13.4B |
| 11 | Tunisia | $4,236 | $14,454 | $52.1B |
| 12 | Morocco | $4,225 | $10,604 | $160.6B |
| 13 | Eswatini | $4,072 | $12,192 | $4.9B |
| 14 | Djibouti | $3,833 | $8,291 | $4.2B |
| 15 | São Tomé and Principe | $3,504 | $6,247 | $825.1M |
| 16 | Egypt | $3,454 | $19,937 | $386.1B |
| 17 | Angola | $2,850 | $10,115 | $108.1B |
| 18 | Côte d'Ivoire | $2,726 | $7,663 | $87.1B |
| 19 | Zimbabwe | $2,695 | $6,652 | $45.3B |
| 20 | Congo, Republic of | $2,412 | $6,698 | $15.2B |
| 21 | Ghana | $2,398 | $8,029 | $82.6B |
| 22 | Mauritania | $2,270 | $7,896 | $11.0B |
| 23 | Kenya | $2,204 | $6,902 | $119.8B |
| 24 | Cameroon | $1,849 | $5,589 | $53.8B |
| 25 | Senegal | $1,766 | $5,070 | $32.8B |
| 26 | Comoros | $1,642 | $3,910 | $1.4B |
| 27 | Guinea | $1,633 | $4,500 | $24.6B |
| 28 | Benin | $1,484 | $4,432 | $21.5B |
| 29 | Zambia | $1,216 | $4,241 | $25.8B |
| 30 | Tanzania | $1,201 | $4,183 | $79.0B |
| 31 | Uganda | $1,142 | $3,481 | $55.1B |
| 32 | Nigeria | $1,084 | $9,093 | $252.2B |
| 33 | Togo | $1,072 | $3,286 | $10.2B |
| 34 | Guinea-Bissau | $1,057 | $3,115 | $2.2B |
| 35 | Chad | $1,019 | $2,904 | $19.7B |
| 36 | Rwanda | $1,014 | $3,765 | $14.3B |
| 37 | Mali | $1,012 | $3,042 | $24.8B |
| 38 | Burkina Faso | $982 | $2,898 | $23.1B |
| 39 | Lesotho | $973 | $3,005 | $2.3B |
| 40 | Gambia | $868 | $3,483 | $2.4B |
| 41 | Sierra Leone | $854 | $3,527 | $7.4B |
| 42 | Liberia | $851 | $1,870 | $4.8B |
| 43 | Sudan | $789 | $2,231 | $39.4B |
| 44 | Niger | $721 | $2,020 | $19.9B |
| 45 | Congo, Democratic Republic of | $686 | $1,856 | $72.7B |
| 46 | Somalia, Fed. Rep. | $683 | $1,726 | $12.1B |
| 47 | Mozambique | $655 | $1,701 | $22.7B |
| 48 | Madagascar | $557 | $1,927 | $17.4B |
| 49 | Central African Republic | $524 | $1,303 | $2.8B |
| 50 | Malawi | $514 | $1,791 | $11.6B |
| 51 | South Sudan | $301 | $771 | $4.6B |
| 52 | Burundi | $282 | $1,074 | $4.0B |
Reference year 2024; 52 countries. Sources: World Bank WDI. Values are current-year figures as published; the European Union aggregate is excluded.
Download the full table as CSV. Cite this page: GDPIndex, “GDP per Capita in Africa by Country”, 2024, https://gdpindex.org/world/gdp-per-capita-in-africa/.
Top of the ranking: Seychelles and Mauritius lead
Top of the ranking: Seychelles and Mauritius lead
Seychelles ranks first among the 52 African countries listed, with GDP per capita of USD 19,743.89 in 2024. Its nominal GDP is USD 2.2 billion, the smallest total in the top fifteen. On a PPP basis, GDP per capita reaches 36,578.49 international dollars, the highest figure in the brief. The ratio of the top value to the median, 1,637.42, is 12.1, which quantifies the distance between the leader and the middle of the distribution.
Mauritius ranks second at USD 11,949.80 per capita, a gap of USD 7,794.09 below Seychelles. Its nominal GDP of USD 15.0 billion is larger than Seychelles' total by USD 12.8 billion, reflecting a population several times greater. PPP GDP per capita stands at 31,516.43 international dollars, second only to Seychelles. The two economies therefore occupy the same tier on both the nominal and PPP measures, while differing sharply in aggregate output.
Composition of the top five
Gabon ranks third at USD 8,744.01 per capita, with nominal GDP of USD 20.9 billion. Botswana follows at USD 7,406.42, with GDP of USD 19.4 billion. Equatorial Guinea ranks fifth at USD 7,387.26, with GDP of USD 12.8 billion. The spread from first to fifth is USD 12,356.63. On PPP terms the order is unchanged across these five, running from 36,578.49 down to 19,248.60 international dollars.
- Seychelles: USD 19,743.89 per capita; GDP USD 2.2 billion
- Mauritius: USD 11,949.80 per capita; GDP USD 15.0 billion
- Gabon: USD 8,744.01 per capita; GDP USD 20.9 billion
- Botswana: USD 7,406.42 per capita; GDP USD 19.4 billion
- Equatorial Guinea: USD 7,387.26 per capita; GDP USD 12.8 billion
Four of the top five hold populations small enough that resource or services output lifts per capita income well above the continental median of USD 1,637.42. South Africa, ranked seventh at USD 6,315.92 per capita, records the largest nominal GDP in the group at USD 401.1 billion, more than eighteen times Gabon's total. The top of the ranking is thus defined by high per capita income at modest aggregate scale, not by economic size.
Concentration and spread: a 70-fold gap between top and bottom
Concentration and spread: a 70-fold gap between top and bottom
Seychelles records GDP per capita of USD 19,743.89, the highest figure in the 52-country set. Burundi, at rank 52, records USD 281.51. The ratio between these two positions is 70.1, and the median across all 52 countries is USD 1,637.42. Seychelles therefore sits at 12.1 times the median. The top 15 entries range from USD 19,743.89 down to USD 3,503.72, a spread of USD 16,240.17 within the leading group alone.
PPP adjustments narrow the gap
On a purchasing power parity basis, Seychelles records intl $36,578.49 and Burundi intl $1,073.91, a ratio of 34.1. South Sudan shows the widest divergence between measures: USD 300.86 nominal against intl $770.52 PPP, a factor of 2.56. Burundi's PPP figure of intl $1,073.91 is 3.81 times its nominal value of USD 281.51. These gaps reflect price-level differences that nominal USD comparisons do not capture.
Total GDP does not track per-capita rank
- South Africa: rank 7 on GDP per capita (USD 6,315.92), GDP of USD 401.1 billion, the largest in the top 15.
- Seychelles: rank 1 on GDP per capita (USD 19,743.89), GDP of USD 2.2 billion.
- Algeria: rank 8 on GDP per capita (USD 5,762.64), GDP of USD 269.2 billion.
- São Tomé and Principe: rank 15 on GDP per capita (USD 3,503.72), GDP of USD 0.8 billion.
Seychelles and São Tomé and Principe hold adjacent positions in the top 15 but differ by a factor of 5.6 on GDP per capita and 2.75 on total GDP. South Africa's economy is 182 times the size of Seychelles' by total output, yet its per-capita figure is 3.13 times lower. The bottom five countries all record GDP per capita below USD 560, with Burundi at USD 281.51 and South Sudan at USD 300.86.
Caveats: what nominal GDP per capita does not capture
Caveats: what nominal GDP per capita does not capture
Nominal GDP per capita converts output at market exchange rates, so it reflects price levels only indirectly. Seychelles records 19,743.89 USD per head against 36,578.49 USD on a PPP basis, a gap of roughly 85 per cent. Mauritius shows 11,949.80 USD nominal and 31,516.43 USD in PPP terms. The same output bundle therefore appears at different values depending on the conversion used, and cross-country comparisons of living standards rest on that conversion choice.
Income distribution is not represented by a national average. South Africa reports 6,315.92 USD per head and a total GDP of 401.1 billion USD, the largest nominal aggregate in the top fifteen. That average sits above the African median of 1,637.42 USD, yet the figure is an arithmetic mean and carries no information on how output is spread across households. A high average can coexist with widespread low consumption.
PPP reordering
Rankings shift when price differences are removed. Algeria holds 5,762.64 USD nominal against 17,669.12 USD in PPP terms, moving it above South Africa on the PPP measure, where South Africa records 15,589.15 USD. Morocco shows 4,225.46 USD nominal and 10,604.34 USD in PPP terms. Non-market activity, including subsistence agriculture and unpaid household work, is excluded from both measures, which understates output in economies where such activity is a large share of total production.
Range and dispersion
- Seychelles at 19,743.89 USD is 12.1 times the African median of 1,637.42 USD.
- Burundi at 281.51 USD and South Sudan at 300.86 USD sit at the base of the 52-country table.
- South Sudan records 770.52 USD in PPP terms, below its nominal position relative to peers.
- Madagascar at 557.20 USD nominal and 1,927.17 USD in PPP terms illustrates the scale of the conversion effect.
Nominal figures also omit informal output, remittances and depletion of natural assets. Libya, at 6,782.48 USD per head and 48.4 billion USD in total GDP, and Equatorial Guinea, at 7,387.26 USD per head, both rest on hydrocarbon extraction that the per capita measure treats as current income rather than asset drawdown. Comparisons across the 52 countries should therefore be read as exchange-rate rankings, not welfare rankings.
Frequently asked questions
Which African country has the highest GDP per capita?
Seychelles ranks first among the 52 African countries listed, with GDP per capita of USD 19,743.89 in 2024. On a purchasing power parity basis the figure is intl $36,578.49. The gap to second place is substantial: Mauritius records USD 11,949.80, roughly 60 per cent of the Seychelles level. Seychelles combines a small population with tourism and fisheries receipts, and its total nominal GDP of USD 2.2 billion is the smallest in the top ten. The median across all 52 countries is USD 1,637.42, so the Seychelles figure is 12.1 times the median.
What is the median GDP per capita across African countries?
The median nominal GDP per capita for the 52 African countries in the dataset is USD 1,637.42. That places the midpoint well below the top 15, whose lowest entry is São Tomé and Principe at USD 3,503.72. The distribution is heavily skewed: the top-ranked economy, Seychelles, sits at USD 19,743.89, or 12.1 times the median. At the other end, Burundi records USD 281.51 and South Sudan USD 300.86. The median therefore sits closer to the bottom of the ranking than to the top, reflecting the concentration of higher incomes in a small group of economies.
Which African countries have the lowest GDP per capita?
Burundi ranks last of the 52 countries, with nominal GDP per capita of USD 281.51 and PPP GDP per capita of intl $1,073.91. South Sudan is 51st at USD 300.86, followed by Malawi at USD 513.53 and the Central African Republic at USD 523.64. Madagascar completes the bottom five at USD 557.20, with total nominal GDP of USD 17.4 billion. All five fall below USD 560 per head, against a continental median of USD 1,637.42. Burundi's figure is approximately 1.4 per cent of the Seychelles level of USD 19,743.89.
How does South Africa compare with other African economies?
South Africa ranks seventh by nominal GDP per capita at USD 6,315.92, and seventh on a PPP basis at intl $15,589.15. Its total nominal GDP of USD 401.1 billion is the largest in the top 15 and more than double Algeria's USD 269.2 billion, the next largest. Per head, however, South Africa trails Libya (USD 6,782.48) and Equatorial Guinea (USD 7,387.26), both smaller economies by aggregate output. The ratio of South Africa's per capita figure to the continental median of USD 1,637.42 is approximately 3.9 to 1.
Which countries rank just below the top ten by GDP per capita?
Rank 11 is Tunisia at USD 4,235.78, followed by Morocco at USD 4,225.46, a difference of USD 10.32. Eswatini is 13th at USD 4,072.36, Djibouti 14th at USD 3,833.43 and São Tomé and Principe 15th at USD 3,503.72. On a PPP basis the order shifts: Tunisia records intl $14,453.70 and Morocco intl $10,604.34, while Eswatini reaches intl $12,191.65. Aggregate output diverges more sharply, with Morocco's nominal GDP of USD 160.6 billion against Tunisia's USD 52.1 billion and São Tomé's USD 0.8 billion.