People have live in the region of present-day Bar since prehistoric times. The Romans built a fort there, which was reconstructed in the 6th century and was named Antipargal. This slowly changed into Antibarium.

The Serbs destroyed the town in 1183, but it was subsequently rebuilt. It changed hands many times, until the Venetians ruled it between 1405 and 1412 and again from 1443 to 1571. They called it Antivari. The Ottomans conquered the area in 1571 and they stayed until 1878, after which it became part of the Kingdom of Montenegro.

Montenegro was an Orthodox country and all Muslims were expelled, resulting in a population decline in Bar. In the 1850s, the town had about 4,000 inhabitants, but in 1880, only 1,800 remained. Bar became part of Yugoslavia in 1918 and it remained that way until 2006, when Montenegro became independent.

Enlargement of Bar's port started in 1976 and when the region was hit by an earthquake in 1979, Bar became an important port to get goods into the country. The town boomed and it slowly became the region's main industrial, tourist and cultural center.

There are several hotels and restaurants in Bar. The town has ferry connections with Bari in Italy. Bar is located on the shore of the Adriatic Sea in the south of Montenegro. It is about 53 km (33 mi) south of Podgorica.