Armed men on a motorcycle carried out a coordinated attack on the villages in the Maradu district where they shot villagers and burned down houses.
A police spokesman told AFP that the attackers disappeared before security forces arrived.
The area is difficult to access with bad roads.
Villagers state that the death toll is at least 43.
Northwestern and central Nigeria are regularly plagued by cattle thieves and kidnappers who plunder villages, kill and kidnap villagers, steal cattle and burn down houses.
On Wednesday, 18 people were killed in a raid on the village of Tsauwa.
Last month, 53 people were killed in six attacks on villages in the Zurmi district.