The New World barbets are a family, Capitonidae, of 15 birds in the order Piciformes, which inhabit humid forests in Central and South America.

[1] These barbets are mostly arboreal birds, which nest in tree holes dug by breeding pairs, laying two to four eggs.

[3] This has turned out to be paraphyletic, though, with regard to toucans; thus, only the New World true barbets are retained in the Capitonidae.

[4][5] The number of species in each family is taken from the list maintained by Frank Gill, Pamela C. Rasmussen and David Donsker on behalf of the International Ornithological Committee (IOC).

Like their relatives, New World barbets are thought to be important agents in seed dispersal in tropical forests.

The quite recently discovered scarlet-banded barbet of Peru is considered vulnerable due to its small population size (estimated at under 1000 birds), although its remote habitat is not immediately threatened.