Provided is a planar lighting device having a thin shape and capable of emitting uniform illumination light with less brightness unevenness. The planar lighting device includes a first and a second light sources arranged at a given distance apart from each other and a light guide plate arranged between the first and second light sources. The light guide plate includes a light exit plane, a first light entrance plane facing the first light source and containing one side of the light exit plane, and a second light entrance plane facing the second light source and containing the opposite side to the one side, and has a shape growing thicker from the first and second light entrance planes toward the center. The light guide plate contains scattering particles for scattering light entering through the first and second light entrance planes and propagating inside by a ratio satisfying 1.1≦Φ·Np·LG·KC≦8.2.