---
title: "Barbados — capital, area, population and currency"
description: "Barbados: capital Bridgetown, area 430 km², population 282,623 (2025), currency Barbadian dollar. Languages, time zones and calling code."
url: https://atoneplace.net/country/barbados/
site: "At One Place"
---

# Barbados

**Barbados: Capital Bridgetown**

430 km² · 282,623 people (2025) · Barbadian dollar

Unlike most of the Lesser Antilles, Barbados is not volcanic — it is a coral cap on uplifted sediment, which is why it is low and flat and has caves rather than peaks. Harrison's Cave runs about 2.3 km through limestone. The island sits east of the main Caribbean chain, out in the Atlantic.

## The facts

- **Capital:** Bridgetown
- **Area:** 430 km² — 166 sq mi
- **Population:** 282,623 (2025)
- **Density:** 657.3 people per km²
- **Currency:** Barbadian dollar (BBD, $)
- **Official language:** English
- **Time zone:** UTC-04:00
- **Calling code:** +1246
- **Drives on the:** left
- **ISO codes:** BB · BRB
- **Continent:** North America

## How it compares

- **By area:** 188 of 200
- **By population:** 178 of 200

> Population is the only figure on this page that dates — it is a 2025 estimate and will drift. Area, capital, currency, languages, calling code and driving side change rarely or never.

## Countries of a similar size

| Country | Area (km²) | Population |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Seychelles | 455 | 122,730 |
| Antigua and Barbuda | 443 | 94,209 |
| Barbados ← | 430 | 282,623 |
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 389 | 99,924 |
| Grenada | 344 | 117,303 |

## Common questions

### What is the capital of Barbados?

Bridgetown

### What currency does Barbados use?

The Barbadian dollar (BBD).

### How big is Barbados?

430 km², or 166 square miles — 188 of 200 by area.

### Which side of the road does Barbados drive on?

The left.

## Related pages

- [Seychelles](https://atoneplace.net/country/seychelles/)
- [Antigua and Barbuda](https://atoneplace.net/country/antigua-and-barbuda/)
- [Saint Vincent and the Grenadines](https://atoneplace.net/country/saint-vincent-and-the-grenadines/)
- [Grenada](https://atoneplace.net/country/grenada/)
- [United States](https://atoneplace.net/country/united-states/)
- [Mexico](https://atoneplace.net/country/mexico/)
- [Canada](https://atoneplace.net/country/canada/)
- [Guatemala](https://atoneplace.net/country/guatemala/)
- [Haiti](https://atoneplace.net/country/haiti/)
- [Dominican Republic](https://atoneplace.net/country/dominican-republic/)
- [Honduras](https://atoneplace.net/country/honduras/)
- [Cuba](https://atoneplace.net/country/cuba/)

## Sources

- The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency (https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/) [Public domain (US Government)]
- World Bank Open Data — The World Bank (https://data.worldbank.org/) [CC BY 4.0]