Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Papua New Guinea instead of Barbados, you would:
Health
be 29.0% less likely to be obese
In Barbados, 39.4% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 28.0% of people as of 2024.
be 48.0% less likely to die by suicide
Barbados has a suicide rate of 3.5 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Papua New Guinea, it is 1.8 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 50.0% more likely to be living with HIV/AIDS
In Barbados, 1.0% of people are living with AIDS/HIV as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 1.5% of people as of 2024.
live 10.1 years less
In Barbados, the average life expectancy is 76 years (74 years for men, 79 years for women) as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 66 years (64 years for men, 69 years for women) as of 2024.
see 88.5% less spent on your healthcare
Barbados spends $1,153 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Papua New Guinea spends $133 as of 2023.
have 97.9% fewer doctors per person
Barbados has 29.6 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2022. Papua New Guinea has 0.6 as of 2023.
have 61.0% less access to essential health services
Barbados scores 77 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Papua New Guinea scores 30 as of 2021.
Economy
be 60.6% less likely to be unemployed
In Barbados, 6.5% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.6% as of 2025.
make 89.4% less money
Barbados has a GDP per capita of $28,365 as of 2025, while in Papua New Guinea, the GDP per capita is $3,020 as of 2025.
Life
have 2.2 times more children
In Barbados, there are approximately 11.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, there are 24.3 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
be 5.4 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Barbados, approximately 35.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, 189.0 women do as of 2023.
be 3.4 times more likely to die during infancy
In Barbados, approximately 9.1 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, on the other hand, 31.3 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 79.5% less likely to have access to electricity
In Barbados, approximately 100% of people have electricity access (100% in urban areas, and 100% in rural areas) as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 20% of people on average (65% in urban areas, and 13% in rural areas) as of 2023.
be 73.3% less likely to have internet access
In Barbados, approximately 70.4% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, about 18.8% do as of 2024.
be 46.2% less likely to have access to drinking water
In Barbados, approximately 99% of people have access to drinking water as of 2024. In Papua New Guinea, 53% of people do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 78.1% less on education
Barbados spends 3.6% of its total GDP on education as of 2024. Papua New Guinea spends 0.8% of total GDP on education as of 2023.
spend 46.9% less on healthcare
Barbados spends 5.4% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 2.9% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 53.1 times more coastline
Barbados has a total of 97 km of coastline. In Papua New Guinea, that number is 5,152 km.
Safety
be 49.0% more likely to die in a road accident
In Barbados, road accidents kill 10.0 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Papua New Guinea, they kill 14.9 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 99.9% less strain on fresh water
Barbados withdraws 88% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Papua New Guinea withdraws 0% as of 2022.
find 99.4% less home broadband
Barbados has 37.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Papua New Guinea has 0.2 as of 2024.
Environment
emit 79.4% less CO2
Barbados emits 2.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Papua New Guinea emits 0.5 tonnes as of 2024.
be 100.0% more likely to die from air pollution
In Barbados, air pollution causes 19.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Papua New Guinea, it causes 38.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Barbados vs. Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea: At a glance
How big is Papua New Guinea compared to Barbados? See an in-depth size comparison.