Barbados Population and Ethnic Groups

BARBADOS · POPULATION

Barbados is small, ageing and overwhelmingly Black, with a growing mix of faiths and arrivals from nearby islands. This guide sets out who lives on the island as of November 2026.

Barbados population figures show a small island of 261,692 people at the end of 2025, down from 277,821 at the 2010 census. The national statistics office estimated 269,090 residents in 2021 after adjusting for a large undercount.

This guide covers size, age, parishes, ethnic and religious groups, migration and how the groups live together. Every figure carries its date, and census counts are tabulated returns unless the text says estimated.

The Rio Times Caribbean page carries daily regional coverage, and the Barbados Explained guide profiles the island. The Barbados and its neighbours guide covers the region.

Barbados Population: Size and Growth

The census of Sunday, 1 August 2021, put the estimated resident population at 269,090, of whom 139,053 were women and 130,037 men. That is 3.1% fewer than the 277,821 estimated for 2010.

The statistics office tabulated only 136,415 returns, an undercount of 48.7%, after the pandemic disrupted the count. It therefore built its headline figure from the 2010 census, adjusted for births, deaths and net migration.

The office’s key indicators put the end-of-year population at 261,692 in 2025. In that year it recorded 1,915 live births and 3,113 deaths, a natural decrease of 1,198.

Deaths have exceeded births every year from 2016 to 2022, the census report says, and again in 2025. In 2025 that meant about 7.3 births and 11.9 deaths per 1,000 residents, calculated from the office’s totals.

Other estimates differ: the World Bank series, which rests on United Nations estimates, shows 282,623 people for 2025. That is about 20,900 more than the national figure, so this guide uses the national numbers.

Age and Gender: An Ageing Island

The median age was 42.5 in 2021, against 37.3 at the 2010 census. People aged 65 or older numbered 50,018, or 18.6%, up 39.1% from 35,969 in 2010.

Children under 15 numbered 42,844, or 15.9%, down 21.8% from 54,757 in 2010. That is about 117 residents aged 65 or older for every 100 children, a ratio calculated from the census tables.

Residents aged 15 to 64 numbered 176,228, or 65.5%, down 5.8% from 187,095 in 2010. Women make up 51.7% of the whole and outnumber men in every age group from 25 upwards.

Parishes and Where People Live

Barbados has 11 parishes, and St Michael, which holds the capital Bridgetown, is the largest with an estimated 77,394 residents. Christ Church follows with 51,184, so the two hold 47.8% of the island.

St Philip has 32,130, St James 24,819 and St George 21,939. The smallest are St Andrew with 5,677 and St Joseph with 6,697.

These are estimated resident figures for 1 August 2021, built from ratios in earlier counts. The census report warns that results by area would be understated because of the undercount.

Ethnic Groups in Barbados

Of 127,922 people who stated an ethnic origin in the 2021 returns, 119,867 (93.7%) said Black. The next largest were mixed with 3,066 (2.4%), White with 2,706 (2.1%) and East Indian with 1,849 (1.4%).

Smaller groups were Asian with 204, Middle Eastern with 127 and other with 103. A further 8,493 people, or 6.2% of all returns, gave no answer.

In 2010, 92.4% of 226,193 people were Black, 3.1% mixed, 2.7% White and 1.3% East Indian. Shares are close to 2021, but the 2021 count had far more non-responses.

No group other than Black residents reached 2.5% of stated origins in 2021. The census asks each person to state their own ethnic origin, so the counts follow self-description.

Religion in Barbados

In the 2021 returns, 62,079 people, or 48.6% of those who answered, said they had no religious affiliation, against 20.8% in 2010. The census report treats its tabulated results as a large sample, so read the jump with care.

Anglicans were the largest religious group at 17,786 (13.9%), ahead of Other Pentecostal at 14,973 (11.7%). Adventists numbered 5,612 (4.4%), Methodists 3,092 (2.4%) and Roman Catholics 2,618 (2.0%).

Jehovah’s Witnesses numbered 1,930 and Baptists 1,649, while Muslims numbered 1,077, Rastafarians 743 and Hindus 442. Other Christian churches, a catch-all group, numbered 6,249.

In 2010 Anglicans led with 24.2%, followed by people with no religion at 20.8% and Other Pentecostal at 19.7%. Adventists then had 6.0% and Methodists 4.2%.

Migration and the Diaspora

Among 135,433 tabulated residents aged one or over in 2021, 11,213 (8.3%) were born abroad. Of these, 6,342 came from CARICOM countries, the Caribbean Community, and 2,997 from other named countries.

Guyana was the largest single country of birth with 2,505 people. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines had 1,344, the United Kingdom 899 and Saint Lucia 879.

Jamaica had 617, Trinidad and Tobago 576, the United States 438, India 233 and Canada 204. A further 1,874 people had an unknown country of birth.

The World Bank, using United Nations data, estimates 35,187 migrants in Barbados in 2024 and a net outflow of 87 in 2025. These estimates are not comparable with the census returns, which captured about half the population.

The foreign ministry’s diaspora pages list a Barbados Diaspora Database and the Barbados Network Programme, formerly the Returning National Programme. No official count of Barbadians living abroad was found in the sources checked.

How the Groups Live Together

The census records who lives in Barbados but not how groups get on, and no survey of social relations was found. The figures do show one very large group and many small ones.

The census table counts 21 religious categories, and nearly half of those who answered said they had none. Muslims, Hindus, Rastafarians and Jews together numbered 2,304, about 1.8% of answers.

In the returns, 48,817 people were heads of household and 12,305 (9.0%) were grandchildren of the head. These are tabulated counts, so they show a pattern and not a full household count.

In the returns, 28,250 people (20.7%) were married and 87,549 (64.2%) had never married, a group that includes children. Divorced residents numbered 5,454 and widowed residents 5,089.

What It Means for US Readers

US citizens need no visa for stays of up to six months. The State Department’s page advises normal precautions and was last updated on Tuesday, 3 October 2023, so check it before you travel.

The State Department says US-Barbados goods trade totalled US$797.5 million in 2021, with about 40% of Barbados’s imports from the United States. A smaller, older workforce matters to US firms hiring or investing there.

Barbadians living in the United States are not counted by the Barbadian statistics office, and no official count was found. For the wider picture, read the Barbados politics guide and the Barbados economy guide.

What Is Not Known

The 2021 undercount of 48.7% means ethnic, religious and birthplace counts are tabulated returns, not full counts. The split between town and countryside was not published in the sources checked.

Official population figures for 2023 and 2024, and a 2025 age and sex breakdown, were not found. The World Bank and United Nations series differ from the national one by about 20,900 people for 2025.

No count of the Barbadian diaspora, no data on languages spoken and no data on relations between groups were found. The 2010 and 2021 religion counts may not be fully comparable given very different response rates.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many people live in Barbados?

The national statistics office put the population at 261,692 at the end of 2025. The 2021 census estimated 269,090 residents.

What are the main ethnic groups in Barbados?

Of those who stated an origin in the 2021 returns, 93.7% were Black, 2.4% mixed, 2.1% White and 1.4% East Indian. Smaller groups include Asian and Middle Eastern residents.

What is the main religion in Barbados?

Anglicans were the largest group at 13.9% of answers in 2021, but 48.6% said they had no religious affiliation. Pentecostal and other Christian churches follow.

Is the population of Barbados shrinking?

Yes. Deaths overtook births in 2016, and in 2025 there were 3,113 deaths and 1,915 births.

How old is the population of Barbados?

The median age was 42.5 in 2021, up from 37.3 in 2010. People aged 65 or older were 18.6% of residents.

Where do foreign-born residents of Barbados come from?

Guyana is the largest source with 2,505 people in the 2021 returns. CARICOM countries together account for 6,342 of 11,213 foreign-born residents.

Do US citizens need a visa for Barbados?

No visa is needed for stays of up to six months, according to the State Department. Check its page before you travel, as rules can change.

Sources: Barbados Statistical Service, 2021 Population and Housing Census report; Barbados Statistical Service, Census Tables 2021 (tables 02.03, 02.05, 04.01); Barbados Statistical Service, 2010 Population and Housing Census, Volume 1; Barbados Statistical Service, key indicators 2025; Barbados Statistical Service, vital statistics indicators; Barbados Ministry of Foreign Affairs, diaspora relations; US State Department, Barbados travel information; US State Department, US relations with Barbados; World Bank, Barbados population and migration indicators.