Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Barbados instead of Iceland, you would:
Health
be 70.6% less likely to die by suicide
Iceland has a suicide rate of 11.9 per 100,000 people as of 2021. In Barbados, it is 3.5 per 100,000 as of 2021.
live 6.5 years less
In Iceland, the average life expectancy is 83 years (81 years for men, 84 years for women) as of 2024. In Barbados, that number is 76 years (74 years for men, 79 years for women) as of 2024.
be 77.5% more likely to be obese
In Iceland, 22.2% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Barbados, that number is 39.4% of people as of 2024.
see 83.4% less spent on your healthcare
Iceland spends $6,927 per person on healthcare as of 2024 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Barbados spends $1,153 as of 2023.
have 32.4% fewer doctors per person
Iceland has 43.7 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2023. Barbados has 29.6 as of 2022.
have 13.5% less access to essential health services
Iceland scores 89 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Barbados scores 77 as of 2021.
Economy
be 80.1% more likely to be unemployed
In Iceland, 3.6% of the labor force is unemployed as of 2025. In Barbados, that number is 6.5% as of 2025.
be 2.9 times more likely to live below the poverty line
In Iceland, 8.8% live below the poverty line as of 2017. In Barbados, however, that number is 25.7% as of 2016.
make 71.2% less money
Iceland has a GDP per capita of $98,323 as of 2025, while in Barbados, the GDP per capita is $28,365 as of 2025.
Life
be 11.7 times more likely to die during childbirth
In Iceland, approximately 3.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Barbados, 35.0 women do as of 2023.
be 4.3 times more likely to die during infancy
In Iceland, approximately 2.1 children (per 1,000 live births) die before they reach the age of one as of 2024. In Barbados, on the other hand, 9.1 children do as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 28.4% less likely to have internet access
In Iceland, approximately 98.2% of the population has internet access as of 2024. In Barbados, about 70.4% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 51.3% less on education
Iceland spends 7.3% of its total GDP on education as of 2022. Barbados spends 3.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
spend 39.9% less on healthcare
Iceland spends 9.0% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2024. In Barbados, that number is 5.4% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 98.0% less coastline
Iceland has a total of 4,970 km of coastline. In Barbados, that number is 97 km.
Safety
be 5.8 times more likely to be murdered
Iceland has a homicide rate of 1.3 per 100,000 people as of 2023. In Barbados, that number is 7.4 per 100,000 as of 2023.
be 4.2 times more likely to die in a road accident
In Iceland, road accidents kill 2.4 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Barbados, they kill 10.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
live with 224.4 times more strain on fresh water
Iceland withdraws 0% of its available fresh water each year as of 2022. Barbados withdraws 88% as of 2022.
Environment
emit 70.4% less CO2
Iceland emits 8.5 tonnes of CO2 per person each year as of 2024. Barbados emits 2.5 tonnes as of 2024.
be 2.4 times more likely to die from air pollution
In Iceland, air pollution causes 8.0 deaths per 100,000 people as of 2019. In Barbados, it causes 19.0 as of 2019.
Sources: World Bank (2016–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2019–2021), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Iceland vs. Barbados
Barbados: At a glance
How big is Barbados compared to Iceland? See an in-depth size comparison.