Despite its strategic importance for food security in semiarid regions, no studies have assessed the rhizosphere microbiome of the prickly-pear cactus (Nopalea cochenillifera) and how its growth stage, bacterial inoculation, and genotypes may shape the rhizosphere. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess diversity, composition, and enrichment of bacterial communities in the rhizosphere of the prickly-pear cactus genotypes 'Baiana' and 'Doce', both with and without inoculation with Bacillus subtilis and Paenibacillus sp., at 90 and 270 days of growth. In this study we cultivated samples rhizospheric soil, extracted DNA, and assessed the bacterial communities by 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing by Illumina platform. The bacterial communities in the rhizosphere were significantly driven by plant growth stage and showed high diversity, while both inoculation and genotype showed lower effects. Key bacterial phyla typical of semiarid regions were predominant, including Actinobacteriota, Proteobacteria, and Firmicutes. Enrichment patterns of bacterial genera shifted with plant growth, with Streptomyces and Bradyrhizobium predominating at 90 days, and Bacillus and Gaiella at 270 days. PGPB inoculation further shaped specific taxa, while non-inoculated plants showed distinct enrichment over time. This study showed that the bacterial communities in the rhizosphere of N. cochenillifera was primarily shaped by plant growth stage, with key bacterial groups potentially associated to stress tolerance which provide important insights into soil microbial ecology in semiarid regions.