Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Barbados instead of El Salvador, you would:
Health
live 4.0 years longer
In El Salvador, the average life expectancy is 72 years (68 years for men, 76 years for women) as of 2024. In Barbados, that number is 76 years (74 years for men, 79 years for women) as of 2024.
have 83.0% more doctors per person
El Salvador has 16.2 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Barbados has 29.6 as of 2022.
be 54.1% less likely to die by suicide
El Salvador has a suicide rate of 7.6 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Barbados, it is 3.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
be 22.5% more likely to be obese
In El Salvador, 32.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Barbados, that number is 39.4% of people as of 2024.
Economy
make 4.9 times more money
El Salvador has a GDP per capita of $5,767 as of 2025, while in Barbados, the GDP per capita is $28,365 as of 2025.
be 97.6% more likely to be unemployed
In El Salvador, 3.3% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Barbados, that number is 6.5% as of 2025.
Life
have 28.7% fewer children
In El Salvador, there are approximately 15.6 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Barbados, there are 11.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 41.9% less on healthcare
El Salvador spends 9.3% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Barbados, that number is 5.4% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 68.4% less coastline
El Salvador has a total of 307 km of coastline. In Barbados, that number is 97 km.
Safety
be 53.5% less likely to die in a road accident
In El Salvador, road accidents kill 21.5 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Barbados, they kill 10.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 3.0 times more home broadband
El Salvador has 12.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2024. Barbados has 37.5 as of 2022.
live with 7.2 times more strain on fresh water
El Salvador withdraws 12% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Barbados withdraws 88% as of 2022.
Environment
be 38.7% less likely to die from air pollution
In El Salvador, air pollution causes 31.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Barbados, it causes 19.0 as of 2019.
emit 66.9% more CO2
El Salvador emits 1.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Barbados emits 2.5 tonnes as of 2024.
Sources: World Bank (2021–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: El Salvador vs. Barbados
Barbados: At a glance
How big is Barbados compared to El Salvador? See an in-depth size comparison.