Barbados Population
Barbados had an estimated population of 282,623 in mid-2025 (World Bank), making it the 179th most populous of 217 countries and territories, with 0.00% of everyone alive. The counter above projects that figure forward at the current growth rate of +0.06% a year.
Barbados at a glance
How Barbados's population is changing
Barbados's population is roughly stable: +0.06% a year, which works out to about +156 people per year, or +0 a day. Births (11.1 per 1,000) and deaths (10.2 per 1,000) alone would give +0.09% a year; net migration removes about 87 people a year (−0.03%). Roughly one in every 29,068 people on Earth lives in Barbados.
Population of Barbados since 1960
In 1960, Barbados had 230,893 people. By 2025 that was 282,623 — 1.2× larger. The fastest growth came between 1960 and 1970, when the population rose by 8%.
| Year | Population | Change vs previous row |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 230,893 | — |
| 1970 | 249,387 | +8.0% |
| 1980 | 251,524 | +0.9% |
| 1990 | 258,582 | +2.8% |
| 2000 | 262,063 | +1.3% |
| 2010 | 275,243 | +5.0% |
| 2020 | 281,698 | +2.3% |
| 2025 | 282,623 | +0.3% |
Barbados from 1800 to 2100
Modelled estimates put Barbados at about 81,729 people in 1800; the UN estimates 282,628 in 2025 (3× 1800) and projects 194,711 for 2100 in its medium scenario. The population is projected to peak around 2028 at 282,801 and decline afterwards.
| Year | Population | Kind |
|---|---|---|
| 1800 | 81,729 | modelled estimate |
| 1850 | 135,605 | modelled estimate |
| 1900 | 193,451 | modelled estimate |
| 1950 | 209,928 | UN estimate |
| 2000 | 262,071 | UN estimate |
| 2025 | 282,628 | UN projection |
| 2050 | 264,225 | UN projection |
| 2075 | 230,497 | UN projection |
| 2100 | 194,711 | UN projection |
Country live/base figures use World Bank estimates; this historical/future chart uses a separate UN series and need not match the World Bank base in overlapping years. Before 1950: HYDE 3.3 / Gapminder reconstructions via Our World in Data — historical modelling, not censuses. 1950–2023: UN World Population Prospects 2024. 2024–2100: UN medium projection. Open the time machine to see the whole map in any year.
Largest listed places in Barbados
2 records sorted by displayed base population. Definitions vary (province/administrative unit, UN urban centre or GeoNames settlement); this is not a harmonised city ranking. Shares use World Bank 2025 country population 282,623. Dates and boundaries may differ. Overlapping entities are not summed.
| # | Place | Population | Definition | Share | Source / reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bridgetown | 121,398 | UN urban centre | 42.95% | UN DESA, World Urbanization Prospects 2025; 2025 annual estimate |
| 2 | White Hill | 5,139 | GeoNames settlement | 1.82% | GeoNames settlement record; Population reference date not supplied in local record |
How Barbados compares
Barbados has almost the same population as French Polynesia (282,465).
| Rank | Country | Population | vs Barbados | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #177 |  Vanuatu | 335,169 | +19% | compare → |
| #178 |  New Caledonia | 295,333 | +4% | compare → |
| #180 |  French Polynesia | 282,465 | −0% | compare → |
| #181 |  São Tomé and Príncipe | 240,254 | −15% | compare → |
Compare Barbados with any country →
Same region (Latin America & Caribbean): Brazil, Mexico, Colombia, Argentina, Peru, Venezuela.
Explore around Barbados
Nearest countries
Barbados has no land border. Closest by distance:
Saint Lucia 180,149 · 1.6× smaller · compare
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 99,924 · 2.8× smaller · compare
Grenada 117,303 · 2.4× smaller · compare
Dominica 65,871 · 4.3× smaller · compare
In its region
Barbados is the 28th most populous of the 42 economies in Latin America & Caribbean, holding 0.0% of the region's 666,592,570 people.
Rankings featuring Barbados
Cities
Bridgetown, White Hill — all Barbados's cities on the map.
World population history · The world when you were born · Barbados when you were born · Time machine · Embed this live counter on your site
About these numbers
Population, growth, birth and death rates, migration, density, age structure, life expectancy, fertility and GDP per capita come from the World Bank Indicators API (latest available year shown beside each figure). The live counter applies the annual growth rate continuously from 1 July 2025 — a model, not a measurement. City populations are the latest census or official estimate held by GeoNames and are not projected. Sub-city units are folded into their parent city.
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Read this country carefully
This page is a structured reference entry. Its sources, geographic definition and reference dates determine what the figures mean; it is not independent reporting about the causes of change. Read the accompanying explanation before comparing different places or vintages.