Homicides in Barbados
Barbados: Homicides was 21 homicides in 2023. ▲ Rising
Homicides in Barbados, 1990–2023
Source: UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data. Measured in homicides.
Analysis
The most recent figure for homicides in Barbados is 21 homicides, measured in 2023.
That represents a change of down 51.2% on the previous year and down 12.5% over ten years.
Over the whole period, homicides in Barbados peaked at 48 homicides in 2019 and was at its lowest, 17 homicides, in 1995.
That places Barbados 134th out of 179 countries with data for 2023, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 32 years of available data.
Homicides in Barbados, year by year
| Year | homicides | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 34 homicides | — |
| 1991 | 21 homicides | -38.2% |
| 1992 | 22 homicides | +4.8% |
| 1993 | 21 homicides | -4.5% |
| 1994 | 20 homicides | -4.8% |
| 1995 | 17 homicides | -15.0% |
| 1998 | 20 homicides | +17.6% |
| 1999 | 23 homicides | +15.0% |
| 2000 | 20 homicides | -13.0% |
| 2001 | 25 homicides | +25.0% |
| 2002 | 25 homicides | +0.0% |
| 2003 | 33 homicides | +32.0% |
| 2004 | 22 homicides | -33.3% |
| 2005 | 29 homicides | +31.8% |
| 2006 | 35 homicides | +20.7% |
| 2007 | 25 homicides | -28.6% |
| 2008 | 23 homicides | -8.0% |
| 2009 | 19 homicides | -17.4% |
| 2010 | 31 homicides | +63.2% |
| 2011 | 27 homicides | -12.9% |
| 2012 | 22 homicides | -18.5% |
| 2013 | 24 homicides | +9.1% |
| 2014 | 25 homicides | +4.2% |
| 2015 | 31 homicides | +24.0% |
| 2016 | 22 homicides | -29.0% |
| 2017 | 30 homicides | +36.4% |
| 2018 | 28 homicides | -6.7% |
| 2019 | 48 homicides | +71.4% |
| 2020 | 41 homicides | -14.6% |
| 2021 | 32 homicides | -22.0% |
| 2022 | 43 homicides | +34.4% |
| 2023 | 21 homicides | -51.2% |
Barbados compared with similar countries
- Barbados's 21 homicides is below the median for high income countries, which is 52.5 homicides, 40% of the median. (76 countries reporting)
- Barbados's 21 homicides is below the median for Latin America & Caribbean, which is 489 homicides, 4% of the median. (41 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 22.25 homicides | 17 homicides | 34 homicides | 8 |
| 2000s | 25.6 homicides | 19 homicides | 35 homicides | 10 |
| 2010s | 28.8 homicides | 22 homicides | 48 homicides | 10 |
| 2020s | 34.25 homicides | 21 homicides | 43 homicides | 4 |
Countries ranked near Barbados
More social development data for Barbados
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 5 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 577 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 1 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 1 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.002 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 577 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is homicides in Barbados?
- Homicides in Barbados was 21 homicides in 2023, according to UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest homicides recorded in Barbados?
- The highest recorded value was 48 homicides in 2019.
- What is the lowest homicides recorded in Barbados?
- The lowest recorded value was 17 homicides in 1995.
- How does Barbados rank for homicides?
- Barbados ranks 134th out of 179 countries with data for 2023.
- Is homicides rising or falling in Barbados?
- Over the last ten years it is down 12.5%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Barbados data come from?
- The figures come from UN, World Population Prospects (2024); United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (2025) – with minor processing by Our World in Data, published as part of Homicides. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 32 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of intentional homicides.