Quality of life comparison
If you lived in Barbados instead of Tuvalu, you would:
Health
live 9.1 years longer
In Tuvalu, the average life expectancy is 67 years (64 years for men, 71 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 39.5% less likely to be obese
In Tuvalu, 65.1% of adults are obese as of 2024. In Barbados, that number is 39.4% of people as of 2024.
have 2.2 times more doctors per person
Tuvalu has 13.5 doctors per 10,000 people as of 2020. Barbados has 29.6 as of 2022.
have 48.1% more access to essential health services
Tuvalu scores 52 out of 100 on the universal health coverage index as of 2021. Barbados scores 77 as of 2021.
see 31.0% less spent on your healthcare
Tuvalu spends $1,671 per person on healthcare as of 2023 (international dollars, adjusted for prices). Barbados spends $1,153 as of 2023.
Economy
make 4.7 times more money
Tuvalu has a GDP per capita of $6,041 as of 2025, while in Barbados, the GDP per capita is $28,365 as of 2025.
Life
be 79.4% less likely to die during childbirth
In Tuvalu, approximately 170.0 women die from pregnancy or childbirth per 100,000 live births as of 2023. In Barbados, 35.0 women do as of 2023.
be 44.8% less likely to die during infancy
In Tuvalu, approximately 16.5 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.
have 49.4% fewer children
In Tuvalu, there are approximately 22.0 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024. In Barbados, there are 11.1 babies per 1,000 people as of 2024.
Basic Needs
be 13.3% less likely to have internet access
In Tuvalu, approximately 81.2% of the population has internet access as of 2022. In Barbados, about 70.4% do as of 2024.
Expenditures
spend 72.3% less on education
Tuvalu spends 12.8% of its total GDP on education as of 2023. Barbados spends 3.6% of total GDP on education as of 2024.
spend 80.1% less on healthcare
Tuvalu spends 27.1% of its total GDP on healthcare as of 2023. In Barbados, that number is 5.4% of GDP as of 2023.
Geography
see 4.0 times more coastline
Tuvalu has a total of 24 km of coastline. In Barbados, that number is 97 km.
Safety
be 44.1% less likely to die in a road accident
In Tuvalu, road accidents kill 17.9 people per 100,000 as of 2021. In Barbados, they kill 10.0 per 100,000 as of 2021.
Infrastructure
find 8.3 times more home broadband
Tuvalu has 4.5 fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 people as of 2022. Barbados has 37.5 as of 2022.
Sources: World Bank (2020–2025), United Nations SDG Indicators (2021–2022), World Health Organization (2024), The World Factbook. How we calculate this
Compare further: Tuvalu vs. Barbados
Barbados: At a glance
How big is Barbados compared to Tuvalu? See an in-depth size comparison.