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In sub-Saharan African countries, exposure to air pollutants, such as fine particulate matter (PM 2.5), in the residential sector is a serious environmental issue which causes health problems. Identifying the driving factors of such air pollutants is significant to formulate policies to reduce emissions and achieve a sustainable society. This study examined five socioeconomic drivers (emission intensity, the share of each energy source, energy intensity, household size, and the number of households) for energy-related air pollutants (PM 2.5 , nitrogen oxide, and non-methane volatile organic compounds) from the residential sector in Ghana and Nigeria from 1990 to 2018 using index decomposition analysis. Furthermore, we compared the similarities and differences in the driving factors of the two countries that showed different emission trends. We identified factors contributing to increasing/decreasing emissions in the two countries. In particular, the household effect is an increasing factor for both countries, while the household size effect is a decreasing factor. By contrast, the emission intensity, energy type, and energy intensity factors affect differently for the two countries. This finding suggests that energy-related policy considerably impacts the trends of air pollutant emissions from the residential sector. • Household pollutant emissions in Ghana and Nigeria are decomposed into five factors. • The household effect is their common increasing factors. • The household size effect is the common decreasing factors. • The emission intensity, energy type, and energy intensity effects affect differently. • Differences in their energy-related policies affect pollutant emission trends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]