Nigeria recorded only modest gains in the Surfshark Digital Quality of Life Index (DQL) 2025, rising from 100th to 97th place globally. Despite slight improvement, the country continues to lag behind regional peers such as South Africa (75th) and Kenya (95th), largely due to persistent issues with Internet affordability and infrastructure.
The DQL study evaluates five pillars of digital wellbeing: Internet affordability, Internet quality, digital infrastructure, digital security, and Artificial Intelligence (AI)—the newest addition to the index. While Nigeria ranked a strong 58th in digital security, it struggled across nearly all other pillars, placing 103rd in affordability, 108th in digital infrastructure, 117th in Internet quality, and 85th in AI development.
The report highlights that Nigerians must work one hour and 41 minutes per month to afford mobile Internet—14 times more than users in Angola, where data is the most affordable globally. Fixed Internet is even more costly: Nigerians need 14 hours and 32 minutes of monthly work time to pay for it, compared to just 11 minutes in Bulgaria, the world’s cheapest.
Internet speeds also remain far below global averages. Nigeria’s fixed broadband averages 46Mbps, compared to 463Mbps in Singapore, the global leader. Mobile Internet averages 87Mbps—significantly slower than the United Arab Emirates, which tops the mobile chart at 576Mbps. Nigeria’s latency levels—49ms for mobile and 39ms for fixed—further drag its performance.
Digital infrastructure remains a structural challenge. Only 39% of Nigerians have Internet access, with the country ranking 108th globally for connectivity and 107th for network readiness. These gaps also affect Nigeria’s AI readiness (83rd) and investment attractiveness (88th), limiting the nation’s ability to integrate AI into public services and economic development.
Despite these drawbacks, the report notes Nigeria’s consistent progress in digital security, outpacing both South Africa and Kenya. According to Tomas Stamulis, measuring digital life quality now requires evaluating AI adoption, as global competitiveness increasingly depends on reliable connectivity, secure systems, and effective regulation.
The findings warn that without significant upgrades to its digital infrastructure and Internet affordability, Nigeria risks widening its digital divide and missing out on the economic potential of AI and next-generation digital services.
