Formerly known as Port-Étienne, this town in northwestern Mauritania is the administrative centre of the Dakhlet-Nouadhibou Region, on the Atlantic Ocean.

Its economy is predominantly based on fishing and fish-processing.

The nearby seaport of Point-Central in 1963 became the shipping centre for iron ore, which is produced in the interior around Fdérik.

Nouadhibou's population is 70,000 (1992 update).