Barbados — Unemployment
Unemployment Rate for Barbados, 1991–2025.
Unemployment for Barbados was 6.52% in 2025, according to the latest World Bank data. The series covers 35 years, from 1991 to 2025. The highest recorded value was 24.54% in 1993. The lowest was 6.45% in 2024 (about 1.0× the low point). Across that span the compound annual growth rate works out to -3.56% per year.
Barbados ranks 69 of 187 economies on this measure (1 = highest), putting it in the top 37%. The median for Latin America & Caribbean is 5.99%, so Barbados sits above it. It peaked in 1993 and has fallen 73% since. Over the last decade (2015–2025) the figure moved down 33%. Within Latin America & Caribbean it ranks 15 of 31 economies; Puerto Rico (US) (5.99%) is just below it. Its sharpest one-year move was down 34% in 2022. That is 22% below this series' own ten-year average.
Data highlights
World ranking. Slipped: 5th of 187 in 1991 → 74th of 187 in 2000 → 51st of 187 in 2010 → 53rd of 187 in 2020 → 64th of 182 in 2025.
Key figures
Full history — 1991 to 2025
| Year | % of total labor force | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 6.52% | +0.1 pp |
| 2024 | 6.45% | -0.1 pp |
| 2023 | 6.54% | -0.7 pp |
| 2022 | 7.26% | -3.8 pp |
| 2021 | 11.02% | +0.4 pp |
| 2020 | 10.59% | +2.2 pp |
| 2019 | 8.41% | +0.1 pp |
| 2018 | 8.32% | -0.3 pp |
| 2017 | 8.62% | +0.4 pp |
| 2016 | 8.25% | -1.6 pp |
| 2015 | 9.8% | -2.4 pp |
| 2014 | 12.17% | +0.6 pp |
| 2013 | 11.55% | -0.0 pp |
| 2012 | 11.59% | +0.4 pp |
| 2011 | 11.19% | +0.5 pp |
| 2010 | 10.69% | +0.7 pp |
| 2009 | 10.02% | +1.9 pp |
| 2008 | 8.12% | +0.7 pp |
| 2007 | 7.41% | -1.3 pp |
| 2006 | 8.73% | -0.3 pp |
| 2005 | 9.08% | -0.5 pp |
| 2004 | 9.57% | -1.4 pp |
| 2003 | 11% | +0.7 pp |
| 2002 | 10.32% | +0.5 pp |
| 2001 | 9.85% | +0.5 pp |
| 2000 | 9.35% | -1.3 pp |
| 1999 | 10.61% | -1.8 pp |
| 1998 | 12.4% | -2.2 pp |
| 1997 | 14.61% | -0.1 pp |
| 1996 | 14.71% | -4.9 pp |
| 1995 | 19.66% | -3.3 pp |
| 1994 | 22.98% | -1.6 pp |
| 1993 | 24.54% | +1.6 pp |
| 1992 | 22.94% | +0.5 pp |
| 1991 | 22.41% | — |
Frequently asked questions
What was Barbados’s Unemployment in 1992?
22.94% (1992). The full year-by-year table above lists every published year, most recent first.
Are changes in this series measured in percentage points?
Yes. The series is a share expressed in % of total labor force, so year-over-year movements in the Change column are percentage points (pp), not percent.
Is Barbados’s Unemployment growing or shrinking?
Between 1991 and 2025 the series was shrinking overall: -70.9% in total — about 3.6% a year compounded.
Where does this data come from?
World Bank Open Data (CC BY-4.0), indicator SL.UEM.TOTL.ZS. Values are reproduced as published; this page only computes summary statistics such as change, CAGR and extremes.
What are the most recent published figures?
The last five published years: 2025: 6.52%; 2024: 6.45%; 2023: 6.54%; 2022: 7.26%; 2021: 11.02%. Earlier years are in the full-history table below.
Related data
SL.UEM.TOTL.ZS — Unemployment Rate. Data licensed under CC BY 4.0. Values are reproduced as published; this page computes the summary statistics (change, CAGR, extremes) from the underlying annual series. View the original dataset on data.worldbank.org.