Barbados vs Maldives
Barbados is 47% larger than Maldives.
BarbadosMaldivesBarbados moved onto Maldives · Equal-area projection
1.47×
Barbados is 1.47× the area of Maldives.
 Barbados |  Maldives | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaBarbados: 1.47× the area | 439 km²#183 of 194 | 298 km²#187 of 194 |
| Coastline | Coast, no land border | Coast, no land border |
| Land neighbours | 0 | 0 |
| People | ||
| PopulationMaldives: 1.87× the population | 282,623#174 of 194 · 2025 | 529,676#167 of 194 · 2025 |
| DensityMaldives: 2.76× the density | 644 / km²#8 of 194 | 1,777 / km²#6 of 194 |
| Urban populationBarbados: 1.4× the urban share | 60%#106 of 192 · 2025 | 43%#145 of 192 · 2025 |
| Fertility rateBarbados: 1.1× the births per woman | 1.71 per woman#117 of 192 · 2024 | 1.56 per woman#127 of 192 · 2024 |
| Population growthMaldives: 0.29 points higher | +0.06%#154 of 192 · 2025 | +0.35%#141 of 192 · 2025 |
| Birth rateBarbados: 1.05× the birth rate | 11.1 per 1,000#122 of 192 · 2024 | 10.6 per 1,000#132 of 192 · 2024 |
| Death rateBarbados: 4.25× the death rate | 10.2 per 1,000#32 of 192 · 2024 | 2.4 per 1,000#186 of 192 · 2024 |
| Children under 15Maldives: 1.9 points higher | 17.1%#140 of 192 · 2025 | 19.0%#119 of 192 · 2025 |
| People over 65Barbados: 12.1 points higher | 17.1%#45 of 192 · 2025 | 5.0%#123 of 192 · 2025 |
| Net migrationBarbados: 4.0 per 1,000 higher | −0.3 per 1,000#89 of 192 · 2025 | −4.3 per 1,000#171 of 192 · 2025 |
| Refugees abroadBarbados: 17× the refugees for its size | 2.04 per 1,000#41 of 190 · 2025 | 0.12 per 1,000#113 of 190 · 2025 |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyMaldives: 5.0 years longer | 76.3 years#75 of 192 · 2024 | 81.3 years#37 of 192 · 2024 |
| Infant mortalityBarbados: 1.94× the infant mortality | 9.1 per 1,000 births#115 of 191 · 2024 | 4.7 per 1,000 births#144 of 191 · 2024 |
| DoctorsBarbados: 1.32× the doctors per person | 2.96 per 1,000#61 of 178 · 2022 | 2.24 per 1,000#80 of 178 · 2019 |
| University enrolmentBarbados: 1.05× the university enrolment | 50.8%#75 of 145 · 2025 | 48.5%#77 of 145 · 2022 |
| Human Development IndexBarbados: 0.045 higher | 0.811#68 of 190 · 2023 | 0.766#92 of 190 · 2023 |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capitaBarbados: 2.09× the income per person | $27,080#42 of 185 · 2025 | $12,950#72 of 185 · 2025 |
| GDPBarbados: 1.04× the economy | $8.02B2025 | $7.74B2025 |
| Income group | High income | Upper-middle income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)Maldives: 1.1× the output per person | $25,894#77 of 184 · 2025 | $28,555#72 of 184 · 2025 |
| GDP growthMaldives: 3.6 points higher | +2.7%#111 of 187 · 2025 | +6.3%#26 of 187 · 2025 |
| InflationMaldives: 3.2 points higher | +0.8%#147 of 176 · 2025 | +4.0%#55 of 176 · 2025 |
| UnemploymentBarbados: 1.44× the unemployment | 6.5%#65 of 178 · 2025 | 4.5%#106 of 178 · 2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 1.7%#76 of 149 · 2016 | 0.0%#136 of 149 · 2019 |
| Income inequality (Gini)Barbados: 4.8 higher | 34.1#78 of 149 · 2016 | 29.3#125 of 149 · 2019 |
| Jobs in agricultureMaldives: 10.1 points higher | 1.2% of jobs#166 of 178 · 2025 | 11.3% of jobs#105 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in industryMaldives: 0.7 points higher | 16.2% of jobs#127 of 178 · 2025 | 16.9% of jobs#115 of 178 · 2025 |
| Jobs in servicesBarbados: 10.8 points higher | 82.6% of jobs#8 of 178 · 2025 | 71.8% of jobs#44 of 178 · 2025 |
| Foreign investmentMaldives: 7.7 points higher | 3.4% of GDP#58 of 184 · 2025 | 11.1% of GDP#12 of 184 · 2025 |
| Exports | — | 78.2% of GDP#16 of 168 · 2024 |
| Internet usersMaldives: 1.21× the share online | 70%#118 of 184 · 2024 | 85%#78 of 184 · 2024 |
| Mobile subscriptionsMaldives: 1.29× the mobile subscriptions | 115 per 100#96 of 191 · 2022 | 148 per 100#28 of 191 · 2024 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaBarbados: 1.17× the forest share | 15% of land#133 of 192 · 2024 | 13% of land#140 of 192 · 2024 |
| CO₂ per personMaldives: 1.42× the CO₂ per person | 2.52 t a year#93 of 185 · 2024 | 3.57 t a year#73 of 185 · 2024 |
| Renewable energyBarbados: 4.3 points higher | 5.5%#157 of 190 · 2022 | 1.2%#172 of 190 · 2022 |
| Access to electricityThe same | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)About the same air pollution | 10.9 µg/m³#147 of 191 · 2023 | 11.2 µg/m³#145 of 191 · 2023 |
| Protected landMaldives: 1.9 points higher | 1.1% of land#183 of 191 · 2025 | 3.0% of land#176 of 191 · 2025 |
| Arable landBarbados: 3.1 points higher | 16.2% of land#66 of 190 · 2024 | 13.1% of land#79 of 190 · 2024 |
| Water stressBarbados: 5.57× the water stress | 87.5%#20 of 176 · 2022 | 15.7%#74 of 176 · 2022 |
| PrecipitationMaldives: 1.39× the rain and snow | 1,422 mm#63 of 180 · 2022 | 1,972 mm#35 of 180 · 2022 |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityBarbados: 1.20 higher | +1.28#14 of 193 · 2025 | +0.08#100 of 193 · 2025 |
| Control of corruptionBarbados: 1.56 higher | +1.23#24 of 193 · 2025 | −0.33#105 of 193 · 2025 |
| Homicide rateBarbados: 12.3× the homicide rate | 7.4 per 100,000#36 of 146 · 2023 | 0.6 per 100,000#132 of 146 · 2019 |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Independent state |
| Government | Parliamentary republicparliamentary republic; a Commonwealth realm | Presidential republic |
| Capital | Bridgetown | Male |
| Currency | Barbadian dollar (BBD) | Maldivian rufiyaa (MVR) |
| Official languages | English, Bajan Creole | Maldivian |
| Traffic drives | On the left | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC−4 | UTC+5 |
| Calling code | +1 246 | +960 |
| Region | Caribbean, North America | Southern Asia, Asia |
Area: Wikidata. Population, income, health, economy, environment and governance: World Bank. Human Development Index: UNDP. Government: CIA World Factbook. Ranks among the 194 independent states. All sources
Why the map you grew up with disagrees
On a Mercator map, area grows with distance from the equator. Barbados sits at about 13° N and is stretched to 1.05× its true area; Maldives at 4° N is stretched to 1.0×. Here the two are distorted about the same amount, so Mercator gets this pair roughly right. The figure above uses the Equal Earth projection, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
Questions about this pair
- Is Barbados bigger than Maldives?
- Yes. Barbados is 47% larger than Maldives. Barbados covers 439 km² and Maldives covers 298 km².
- How many times does Maldives fit into Barbados?
- About 1.5 times: Barbados has 1.47× the area of Maldives.
- Why do Barbados and Maldives look different on Google Maps?
- Web maps use the Mercator projection, which stretches area with distance from the equator. Barbados is drawn about 1.05× its true area there and Maldives about 1.0×. For this pair the distortion is similar, so Mercator gets the comparison roughly right. Kartavera uses Equal Earth, where every square kilometre is drawn the same size.
- Which has more people, Barbados or Maldives?
- Maldives: 529,676 people against 282,623. Density: Barbados 644 per km², Maldives 1,777 per km².
- Which is richer, Barbados or Maldives?
- By gross national income per person, Barbados: $27,080 against $12,950 (World Bank, Atlas method, 2025) — 2.09× as much.
- Where do people live longer, Barbados or Maldives?
- In Maldives: life expectancy at birth is 81.3 years, against 76.3 — 5.0 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Barbados and Maldives have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Barbados: parliamentary republic; Maldives: presidential republic.