Imported short grain rice sold by the paint nudged higher in Lagos this week. The mean price rose to ₦4,244 from ₦4,189 the week before, a gain of 1.3%, based on prices from 9 Lagos markets in the week to 23 October 2026.
Still the cheapest paint of the three
Despite the rise, short grain remains the lowest priced of the three rice types sold by the paint. Nigerian manufactured rice averaged ₦4,317 across 6 markets with no change on the week, a move of 0.0%. Imported long grain averaged ₦4,388 across 8 markets, up just 0.3%. Short grain therefore costs about ₦73 less than Nigerian manufactured rice and ₦144 less than long grain per paint.
Market by market
The cheapest paint of imported short grain was found at Sabo Market Yaba for ₦4,000, while the dearest was at Agege Market for ₦4,500. That is a ₦500 gap on a single paint, enough to matter for a family that buys rice every week.
A paint rise that bags did not follow
The paint gain stands out because larger sizes of the same rice moved the other way. A 25kg bag of imported short grain averaged ₦25,400, down 0.2%, and a 50kg bag averaged ₦50,800, down 0.3%. The derica, at ₦806, was unchanged at 0.0%. In other words, the small measure that many households rely on rose while bulk buyers saw slight relief.
What other Nigerian outlets are reporting
Legit.ng's rice price report for the fourth week of October lists imported short grain by the paint at the same level and records a rise against September, while it shows Nigerian manufactured rice unchanged, which agrees with this week's pattern. Nairametrics' October survey of Lagos markets also shows short grain rice cheaper on the bag size it tracked, which fits with the slight dip seen in the 25kg and 50kg bags here. Only these two outlets were found corroborating the rice figures, and both report on rice in Lagos in broadly the same direction.
Data source: Ministry of Agriculture and Food Systems market survey. Compare rice prices by brand and market on the FoodPrices live prices page: https://foodprices.ng/real-time-prices