Barbados vs US Virgin Islands
Barbados is 27% larger than US Virgin Islands.
BarbadosUS Virgin IslandsBarbados moved onto US Virgin Islands · Equal-area projection
1.27×
Barbados is 1.27× the area of US Virgin Islands.
 Barbados |  US Virgin Islands | |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| AreaBarbados: 1.27× the area | 439 km²#183 of 194 | 346 km² |
| Coastline | Coast, no land border | Coast, no land border |
| Land neighbours | 0 | 0 |
| People | ||
| PopulationBarbados: 2.72× the population | 282,623#174 of 194 · 2025 | 103,7922025 |
| DensityBarbados: 2.15× the density | 644 / km²#8 of 194 | 300 / km² |
| Urban populationUS Virgin Islands: 1.6× the urban share | 60%#106 of 192 · 2025 | 95%2025 |
| Fertility rateUS Virgin Islands: 1.15× the births per woman | 1.71 per woman#117 of 192 · 2024 | 1.97 per woman2024 |
| Population growthBarbados: 0.62 points higher | +0.06%#154 of 192 · 2025 | −0.56%2025 |
| Birth rateAbout the same birth rate | 11.1 per 1,000#122 of 192 · 2024 | 11.1 per 1,0002024 |
| Death rateBarbados: 1.11× the death rate | 10.2 per 1,000#32 of 192 · 2024 | 9.2 per 1,0002024 |
| Children under 15Barbados: 0.6 points higher | 17.1%#140 of 192 · 2025 | 16.5%2025 |
| People over 65US Virgin Islands: 6.0 points higher | 17.1%#45 of 192 · 2025 | 23.1%2025 |
| Net migrationBarbados: 3.1 per 1,000 higher | −0.3 per 1,000#89 of 192 · 2025 | −3.4 per 1,0002025 |
| Refugees abroad | 2.04 per 1,000#41 of 190 · 2025 | — |
| Health & education | ||
| Life expectancyUS Virgin Islands: 4.5 years longer | 76.3 years#75 of 192 · 2024 | 80.8 years2024 |
| Infant mortality | 9.1 per 1,000 births#115 of 191 · 2024 | — |
| Doctors | 2.96 per 1,000#61 of 178 · 2022 | — |
| University enrolment | 50.8%#75 of 145 · 2025 | — |
| Human Development Index | 0.811#68 of 190 · 2023 | — |
| Economy | ||
| GNI per capita | $27,080#42 of 185 · 2025 | — |
| GDPBarbados: 1.72× the economy | $8.02B2025 | $4.67B2022 |
| Income group | High income | High income |
| GDP per capita (PPP)US Virgin Islands: 1.92× the output per person | $25,894#77 of 184 · 2025 | $49,7852022 |
| GDP growthBarbados: 4.0 points higher | +2.7%#111 of 187 · 2025 | −1.3%2022 |
| Inflation | +0.8%#147 of 176 · 2025 | — |
| UnemploymentUS Virgin Islands: 1.75× the unemployment | 6.5%#65 of 178 · 2025 | 11.4%2025 |
| Extreme poverty | 1.7%#76 of 149 · 2016 | — |
| Income inequality (Gini) | 34.1#78 of 149 · 2016 | — |
| Jobs in agricultureUS Virgin Islands: 0.4 points higher | 1.2% of jobs#166 of 178 · 2025 | 1.6% of jobs2025 |
| Jobs in industryUS Virgin Islands: 0.4 points higher | 16.2% of jobs#127 of 178 · 2025 | 16.6% of jobs2025 |
| Jobs in servicesBarbados: 0.7 points higher | 82.6% of jobs#8 of 178 · 2025 | 81.9% of jobs2025 |
| Foreign investment | 3.4% of GDP#58 of 184 · 2025 | — |
| Exports | — | 97.4% of GDP2022 |
| Internet users | 70%#118 of 184 · 2024 | — |
| Mobile subscriptionsBarbados: 1.26× the mobile subscriptions | 115 per 100#96 of 191 · 2022 | 91 per 1002022 |
| Energy & environment | ||
| Forest areaUS Virgin Islands: 4.03× the forest share | 15% of land#133 of 192 · 2024 | 59% of land2024 |
| CO₂ per person | 2.52 t a year#93 of 185 · 2024 | 0.00 t a year2024 |
| Renewable energyUS Virgin Islands: 0.4 points higher | 5.5%#157 of 190 · 2022 | 5.9%2022 |
| Access to electricityThe same | 100.0%#1 of 192 · 2024 | 100.0%2024 |
| Air pollution (PM2.5)Barbados: 1.6× the air pollution | 10.9 µg/m³#147 of 191 · 2023 | 6.8 µg/m³2023 |
| Protected landUS Virgin Islands: 12.2 points higher | 1.1% of land#183 of 191 · 2025 | 13.3% of land2025 |
| Arable landBarbados: 14.0 points higher | 16.2% of land#66 of 190 · 2024 | 2.2% of land2024 |
| Water stress | 87.5%#20 of 176 · 2022 | — |
| Precipitation | 1,422 mm#63 of 180 · 2022 | — |
| Governance & safety | ||
| Political stabilityBarbados: 0.31 higher | +1.28#14 of 193 · 2025 | +0.972025 |
| Control of corruptionBarbados: 1.30 higher | +1.23#24 of 193 · 2025 | −0.072025 |
| Homicide rate | 7.4 per 100,000#36 of 146 · 2023 | — |
| State | ||
| Status | Independent state | Territory of United States of America |
| Government | Parliamentary republicparliamentary republic; a Commonwealth realm | Dependent territoryunincorporated organized territory of the US with local self-government; republican form of territorial government with separate executive, legislative, and judicial branches |
| Capital | Bridgetown | Charlotte Amalie |
| Currency | Barbadian dollar (BBD) | United States dollar (USD) |
| Official languages | English, Bajan Creole | English |
| Traffic drives | On the left | On the left |
| Time zone | UTC−4 | UTC−4 |
| Calling code | +1 246 | +1 340 |
| Region | Caribbean, North America | Caribbean, North America |
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; US Virgin Islands at 18° N is stretched to 1.11×. 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 US Virgin Islands?
- Yes. Barbados is 27% larger than US Virgin Islands. Barbados covers 439 km² and US Virgin Islands covers 346 km².
- How many times does US Virgin Islands fit into Barbados?
- About 1.3 times: Barbados has 1.27× the area of US Virgin Islands.
- Why do Barbados and US Virgin Islands 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 US Virgin Islands about 1.11×. 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 US Virgin Islands?
- Barbados: 282,623 people against 103,792. Density: Barbados 644 per km², US Virgin Islands 300 per km².
- Where do people live longer, Barbados or US Virgin Islands?
- In US Virgin Islands: life expectancy at birth is 80.8 years, against 76.3 — 4.5 years longer (World Bank, 2024).
- What kind of government do Barbados and US Virgin Islands have?
- By constitution, as the CIA World Factbook describes them — Barbados: parliamentary republic; US Virgin Islands: dependent territory.