# Demographics of Barbados

This is a demography of Barbados including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

## Population

At the 2010 census Barbados had an estimated population of 277,821. The tabulated population was only 226,193 due to a high undercount (estimated at 18%). The estimated population of 2021 is 281,200 (the 2022 revision of the World Population Prospects).

### Structure of the population

| Age Group | Male | Female | Total | % |
| Total | 133 018 | 144 803 | 277 821 | 100 |
| 0-4 | 8 873 | 8 479 | 17 352 | 6.25 |
| 5-9 | 9 683 | 9 155 | 18 838 | 6.78 |
| 10-14 | 9 445 | 9 122 | 18 567 | 6.68 |
| 15-19 | 9 452 | 9 418 | 18 870 | 6.79 |
| 20-24 | 9 061 | 9 108 | 18 169 | 6.54 |
| 25-29 | 9 313 | 9 775 | 19 088 | 6.87 |
| 30-34 | 9 150 | 9 635 | 18 785 | 6.76 |
| 35-39 | 9 884 | 10 632 | 20 516 | 7.38 |
| 40-44 | 9 663 | 10 450 | 20 113 | 7.24 |
| 45-49 | 10 062 | 11 303 | 21 365 | 7.69 |
| 50-54 | 9 411 | 10 639 | 20 050 | 7.22 |
| 55-59 | 7 871 | 8 782 | 16 653 | 5.99 |
| 60-64 | 6 326 | 7 160 | 13 486 | 4.85 |
| 65-69 | 4 511 | 5 640 | 10 151 | 3.65 |
| 70-74 | 3 804 | 4 876 | 8 680 | 3.12 |
| 75-79 | 2 863 | 4 074 | 6 937 | 2.50 |
| 80-84 | 1 986 | 3 167 | 5 153 | 1.85 |
| 85+ | 1 660 | 3 388 | 5 048 | 1.82 |
| Age group | Male | Female | Total | Percent |
| 0-14 | 28 001 | 26 756 | 54 757 | 19.71 |
| 15-64 | 90 193 | 96 902 | 187 095 | 67.34 |
| 65+ | 14 824 | 21 145 | 35 969 | 12.95 |

## Vital statistics

| | Average population | Live births | Deaths | Natural change | Crude birth rate (per 1000) | Crude death rate (per 1000) | Natural change (per 1000) | Infant mortality rate | TFR |
| 1934 | 166 000 | 5 380 | 4 176 | 1 204 | 32.4 | 25.2 | 7.3 |
| 1935 | 168 000 | 5 315 | 3 702 | 1 613 | 31.6 | 22.0 | 9.6 | | 4.75 |
| 1936 | 170 000 | 5 933 | 3 459 | 2 474 | 34.9 | 20.3 | 14.6 |
| 1937 | 173 000 | 5 670 | 3 511 | 2 159 | 32.8 | 20.3 | 12.5 | 217.0 |
| 1938 | 175 000 | 5 327 | 3 743 | 1 584 | 30.4 | 21.4 | 9.1 | 222.0 |
| 1939 | 177 000 | 5 497 | 3 380 | 2 117 | 31.1 | 19.1 | 12.0 |
| 1940 | 179 000 | 5 784 | 3 305 | 2 479 | 32.3 | 18.5 | 13.8 |
| 1941 | 179 000 | 5 786 | 3 902 | 1 884 | 32.3 | 21.8 | 10.5 |
| 1942 | 180 000 | 5 586 | 3 275 | 2 311 | 31.0 | 18.2 | 12.8 |
| 1943 | 182 000 | 5 877 | 3 104 | 2 773 | 32.3 | 17.1 | 15.2 |
| 1944 | 183 000 | 5 928 | 3 341 | 2 587 | 32.4 | 18.3 | 14.1 |
| 1945 | 187 000 | 6 047 | 3 164 | 2 883 | 32.3 | 16.9 | 15.4 | | 5.13 |
| 1946 | 193 000 | 6 175 | 3 289 | 2 886 | 32.0 | 17.0 | 15.0 | 160.0 |
| 1947 | 197 000 | 6 425 | 3 204 | 3 221 | 32.6 | 16.3 | 16.4 | 171.0 |
| 1948 | 202 000 | 6 517 | 3 141 | 3 376 | 32.3 | 15.5 | 16.7 | 154.0 |
| 1949 | 206 000 | 6 357 | 2 979 | 3 378 | 30.9 | 14.5 | 16.4 | 133.0 |
| 1950 | 211 000 | 6 432 | 2 688 | 3 744 | 30.5 | 12.7 | 17.7 | 125.0 |
| 1951 | 216 000 | 6 793 | 3 000 | 3 793 | 31.5 | 13.9 | 17.6 | 136.0 |
| 1952 | 220 000 | 7 291 | 3 186 | 4 105 | 33.2 | 14.5 | 18.7 | 145.0 |
| 1953 | 223 000 | 7 304 | 2 997 | 4 307 | 32.8 | 13.5 | 19.3 | 139.0 |
| 1954 | 225 000 | 7 576 | 2 544 | 5 032 | 33.6 | 11.3 | 22.3 | 109.0 |
| 1955 | 227 000 | 7 593 | 2 887 | 4 706 | 33.4 | 12.7 | 20.7 | 134.0 | 4.48 |
| 1956 | 228 000 | 7 082 | 2 430 | 4 652 | 31.0 | 10.6 | 20.4 | 97.0 |
| 1957 | 229 000 | 7 314 | 2 469 | 4 845 | 31.9 | 10.8 | 21.1 | 87.0 |
| 1958 | 230 000 | 7 115 | 2 298 | 4 817 | 31.0 | 10.0 | 21.0 | 82.0 |
| 1959 | 230 000 | 7 110 | 2 084 | 5 026 | 30.9 | 9.1 | 21.8 | 71.0 |
| 1960 | 231 000 | 7 833 | 2 127 | 5 706 | 33.9 | 9.2 | 24.7 | 60.0 |
| 1961 | 232 000 | 6 754 | 2 410 | 4 344 | 29.2 | 10.4 | 18.8 | 84.0 |
| 1962 | 233 000 | 6 881 | 2 116 | 4 765 | 29.6 | 9.1 | 20.5 | 54.0 |
| 1963 | 234 000 | 6 756 | 2 090 | 4 666 | 28.9 | 8.9 | 20.0 | 61.0 |
| 1964 | 234 000 | 6 506 | 2 127 | 4 379 | 27.7 | 9.1 | 18.7 | 53.0 |
| 1965 | 235 000 | 6 358 | 1 905 | 4 453 | 27.0 | 8.1 | 18.9 | 39.0 | 3.56 |
| 1966 | 236 000 | 6 319 | 2 012 | 4 307 | 26.8 | 8.5 | 18.3 | 48.0 | 3.52 |
| 1967 | 236 000 | 5 455 | 2 047 | 3 408 | 23.1 | 8.7 | 14.4 | 54.0 | 3.14 |
| 1968 | 237 000 | 5 474 | 2 045 | 3 429 | 23.1 | 8.6 | 14.5 | 46.0 | 3.15 |
| 1969 | 238 000 | 5 196 | 1 987 | 3 209 | 21.9 | 8.4 | 13.5 | 42.0 | 2.91 |
| 1970 | 239 000 | 4 883 | 2 064 | 2 819 | 20.5 | 8.6 | 11.8 | 45.0 | 2.77 |
| 1971 | 240 000 | 5 177 | 2 058 | 3 119 | 21.6 | 8.6 | 13.0 | 29.0 | 2.90 |
| 1972 | 241 000 | 5 303 | 2 045 | 3 258 | 22.0 | 8.5 | 13.5 | 35.0 | 3.04 |
| 1973 | 243 000 | 5 084 | 2 287 | 2 797 | 20.9 | 9.4 | 11.5 | 33.0 | 2.88 |
| 1974 | 244 000 | 4 851 | 2 107 | 2 744 | 19.8 | 8.6 | 11.2 | 31.0 | 2.71 |
| 1975 | 246 000 | 4 683 | 2 147 | 2 536 | 19.1 | 8.7 | 10.3 | 33.0 | 2.53 |
| 1976 | 247 000 | 4 593 | 2 266 | 2 327 | 18.6 | 9.2 | 9.4 | 28.0 | 2.40 |
| 1977 | 247 000 | 4 326 | 2 144 | 2 182 | 17.5 | 8.7 | 8.8 | 25.0 | 2.27 |
| 1978 | 248 000 | 4 304 | 2 087 | 2 217 | 17.4 | 8.4 | 9.0 | 27.0 | 2.04 |
| 1979 | 248 000 | 4 269 | 2 128 | 2 141 | 17.2 | 8.6 | 8.6 | 24.0 | 1.94 |
| 1980 | 249 000 | 4 148 | 2 012 | 2 136 | 16.7 | 8.1 | 8.6 | 24.5 | 1.83 |
| 1981 | 250 500 | 4 413 | 1 878 | 2 535 | 17.7 | 7.5 | 10.2 | 16.0 | 1.92 |
| 1982 | 251 200 | 4 499 | 2 003 | 2 496 | 17.9 | 8.0 | 10.0 | 21.3 | 1.94 |
| 1983 | 251 800 | 4 496 | 2 068 | 2 428 | 17.8 | 8.2 | 9.6 | 24.5 | 1.94 |
| 1984 | 255 800 | 4 214 | 1 976 | 2 238 | 16.6 | 7.8 | 8.8 | 18.4 | 1.85 |
| 1985 | 257 000 | 4 281 | 2 127 | 2 154 | 16.8 | 8.4 | 8.5 | 17.8 | 1.86 |
| 1986 | 258 000 | 4 043 | 2 160 | 1 883 | 15.8 | 8.5 | 7.4 | 19.0 | 1.81 |
| 1987 | 258 800 | 3 828 | 2 195 | 1 633 | 14.9 | 8.6 | 6.4 | 22.3 | 1.76 |
| 1988 | 259 400 | 3 745 | 2 233 | 1 512 | 14.5 | 8.7 | 5.9 | 19.5 | 1.74 |
| 1989 | 260 300 | 4 015 | 2 277 | 1 738 | 15.5 | 8.8 | 6.7 | 18.2 | 1.81 |
| 1990 | 260 800 | 4 313 | 2 232 | 2 081 | 16.6 | 8.6 | 8.0 | 15.5 | 1.85 |
| 1991 | 262 500 | 4 240 | 2 283 | 1 957 | 16.3 | 8.8 | 7.5 | 15.3 | 1.84 |
| 1992 | 263 100 | 4 185 | 2 361 | 1 824 | 16.0 | 9.0 | 7.0 | 13.8 | 1.82 |
| 1993 | 263 900 | 3 781 | 2 391 | 1 390 | 14.4 | 9.1 | 5.3 | 9.8 | 1.75 |
| 1994 | 264 300 | 3 547 | 2 295 | 1 252 | 13.5 | 8.7 | 4.8 | 8.5 | 1.70 |
| 1995 | 264 400 | 3 473 | 2 481 | 992 | 13.2 | 9.4 | 3.8 | 13.2 | 1.68 |
| 1996 | 264 600 | 3 519 | 2 400 | 1 119 | 13.3 | 9.1 | 4.2 | 14.2 | 1.69 |
| 1997 | 266 100 | 3 784 | 2 297 | 1 487 | 14.3 | 8.7 | 5.6 | 13.2 | 1.72 |
| 1998 | 266 800 | 3 612 | 2 471 | 1 141 | 13.6 | 9.3 | 4.3 | 7.8 | 1.66 |
| 1999 | 267 400 | 3 882 | 2 428 | 1 454 | 14.6 | 9.1 | 5.5 | 10.0 | 1.71 |
| 2000 | 268 800 | 3 642 | 2 444 | 1 198 | 14.0 | 9.1 | 5.0 | 17.0 | 1.70 |
| 2001 | 269 900 | 4 052 | 2 408 | 1 644 | 15.0 | 8.9 | 6.1 | 15.8 | 1.69 |
| 2002 | 270 800 | 3 828 | 2 300 | 1 528 | 14.1 | 8.5 | 5.6 | 14.4 | 1.69 |
| 2003 | 271 600 | 3 768 | 2 283 | 1 485 | 13.8 | 8.4 | 5.4 | 9.9 | 1.67 |
| 2004 | 272 400 | 3 474 | 2 435 | 1 039 | 12.7 | 8.9 | 3.8 | 18.4 | 1.60 |
| 2005 | 273 000 | 3 511 | 2 169 | 1 342 | 12.6 | 7.9 | 4.9 | 8.3 | 1.58 |
| 2006 | 273 400 | 3 415 | 2 296 | 1 119 | 12.4 | 8.5 | 3.9 | 11.1 | 1.56 |
| 2007 | 274 200 | 3 536 | 2 213 | 1 323 | 12.9 | 8.1 | 4.8 | 13.0 | 1.57 |
| 2008 | 274 800 | 3 546 | 2 475 | 1 071 | 12.9 | 9.0 | 3.9 | 18.3 | 1.57 |
| 2009 | 275 400 | 3 554 | 2 433 | 1 121 | 12.9 | 8.8 | 4.1 | 8.7 | 1.57 |
| 2010 | 277 800 | 3 443 | 2 198 | 1 245 | 12.2 | 8.0 | 4.2 | 10.1 | 1.54 |
| 2011 | 277 800 | 3 110 | 2 300 | 810 | 11.8 | 8.8 | 3.0 | 13.7 | 1.53 |
| 2012 | 277 700 | 3 175 | 2 321 | 854 | 11.5 | 8.7 | 2.8 | 11.0 | 1.51 |
| 2013 | 277 500 | 3 271 | 2 456 | 815 | 10.9 | 8.2 | 2.7 | 7.3 | 1.49 |
| 2014 | 277 100 | 2 907 | 2 590 | 317 | 10.5 | 9.3 | 1.2 | 10.0 | 1.47 |
| 2015 | 276 600 | 2 877 | 2 570 | 307 | 10.4 | 9.2 | 1.2 | 8.0 | 1.41 |
| 2016 | 275 900 | 2 546 | 2 584 | -38 | 9.2 | 9.4 | -0.2 | 13.5 | |
| 2017 | 274 900 | 2 945 | 2 634 | 311 | 10.7 | 9.6 | 1.1 | 8.9 | |
| 2018 | 273 800 | 2 416 | 2 388 | 28 | 8.7 | 8.7 | 0.0 | 9.1 | |
| 2019 | 272 900 | 2 591 | 2 896 | -305 | 9.5 | 10.6 | -1.1 | 7.3 | |
| 2020 | 271 400 | 2 356 | 2 713 | -357 | 8.7 | 10.0 | -1.3 | 6.4 | |
| 2021 | 270 200 | 2 210 | 2 895 | -685 | 8.2 | 10.7 | -2.5 | 11.3 | |
| 2022 | 268 700 | 2 279 | 3 354 | -1 075 | 8.5 | 12.5 | -4.0 | 9.2 | |

## Ethnic groups

The population of Barbados is predominantly black (91%) or mixed (4%). 3.5% of the population is white and 1% South Asian. The remaining 0.5% of the population includes East Asians (0.1%).

## Languages

English is the official language of Barbados, and is used for communications, administration, and public services all over the island. In its capacity as the official language of the country, the standard of English tends to conform to the vocabulary, pronunciations, spellings, and conventions akin to, but not exactly the same as, those of British English.
A regional variant of English referred to locally as Bajan is spoken by most Barbadians in everyday life especially in informal settings. In its full-fledged form, Bajan sounds markedly different from the Standard English heard on the island. The degree of intelligibility between Bajan and general English depends on the level of creolised vocabulary and idioms. A Bajan speaker may be completely unintelligible to an English speaker from another country. Bajan is influenced by other Caribbean English dialects.

## Religion

According to the 2010 census, 75.6% of the population of Barbados are considered Christian, 2.6% have a non-Christian religion and 20.6% have no religion.
Anglicanism constitutes the largest religious group, with 23.9% of the population. It is represented by the Church in the Province of the West Indies, within which the island belongs to the Diocese of Barbados. Pentecostals are the second largest group (19.5%).
The next largest group are Seventh-day Adventists, 5.9% of the population, followed by Methodists (4.2%). 3.8% of the population are Roman Catholics. Other Christians include Wesleyans (3.4%), Nazarenes (3.2%), Church of God (2.4%), Jehovah's Witnesses (2.0%), Baptists (1.8), Moravians (1.2%), Brethren Christian (0.5%), the Salvationists (0.4%) and Latter-day Saints ( 0.1%).
The number of non-Christians is small. 0.7% of the population are Muslims, most of whom are immigrants or descendants of Indian immigrants from the Indian state of Gujarat. There are three mosques and an Islamic centre. Other religious groups include the Rastafarians (1.0% of the population), which was introduced to Barbados in 1975, Hindus (0.5%), Jews (0.05%), the Baháʼís (0.04%) and Buddhists.