<p>Background: The first case of COVID-19 was reported in Edo State on 23rd March 2020. With poor diagnostic capacity, many cases would likely go undetected as well as deaths. Excess mortality is a more comprehensive measure of the total impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on deaths than the confirmed COVID-19 deaths which do not include COVID-19 deaths that were not captured due to limited testing and under reporting including reported deaths from other causes that are attributable to COVID-19. We estimated excess mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic in Benin City from 2017 to 2020.</p>