The Polish 21-year-old rose to No.1 in the rankings in April after Barty, who'd already won the Australian Open at the start of the year, suddenly retired at age 25.
Swiatek then remained at the summit for the rest of 2022 thanks in part to two grand slam title triumphs at the French Open and US Open.
Swiatek, the WTA Newcomer of the Year only two years ago, led the tour with 67 match wins and eight titles.
That included a run of six trophies in a row during a 37-match winning streak that lasted from February to July - the longest undefeated stretch in women's tennis in a quarter of a century.
"I felt like everything clicked this season," Swiatek said. "And I wasn't expecting to be that consistent."
Swiatek won her second slam at the French Open in June, then claimed the US Open in September, making her the first woman with two Slam trophies in one season since Angelique Kerber in 2016.
The WTA Coach of the Year award went to David Witt. He works with Jessica Pegula, a 28-year-old American who rose to a career-best No.3 in the rankings during 2022 and was a quarter-finalist at three grand slams - losing to Barty or Swiatek each time.
Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova, of the Czech Republic, were the WTA doubles team of the year for the second consecutive season and third time overall after winning the Australian Open, Wimbledon and US Open.
Beatriz Haddad Maia, of Brazil, was 'most improved' player of the year after rising from No.80 to No.15 in the rankings and winning her first two tour-level titles.
China's Zheng Qinwen, who turned 20 in October, was newcomer of the year after rising more than 100 places in the rankings and reaching the fourth round in her French Open debut before bowing out against Swiatek.
Germany's Tatjana Maria was honoured with the comeback player award after getting to her first career grand slam semi-final at Wimbledon at age 34, making her the oldest woman to make her debut at a major tournament. She twice took time away from the tour to have children.
Ons Jabeur received the sportsmanship award, Gabriela Dabrowski collected the player service award and Maria Sakkari won the award for helping promote the sport via off-court activities.
